JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Price Target to $172.00

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its target price decreased by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $178.00 to $172.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 8.49% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on VLO. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $176.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Bank of America raised Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $156.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Friday, March 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.47.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:VLO opened at $158.55 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $51.84 billion, a PE ratio of 7.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $157.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $150.88. Valero Energy has a 52-week low of $112.16 and a 52-week high of $184.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.64. The firm had revenue of $31.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.02 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 24.82% and a net margin of 5.01%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $8.27 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 16.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valero Energy news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total value of $113,846.40. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,105,209.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $570,428,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 12,883.3% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,047,360 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $136,157,000 after buying an additional 1,039,293 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,961,603 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,269,949,000 after buying an additional 517,068 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 37.6% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,558,750 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $266,040,000 after buying an additional 426,093 shares during the period. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 2,389,654 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $310,655,000 after buying an additional 376,449 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.