Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Now Covered by Bank of America

Investment analysts at Bank of America began coverage on shares of Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) in a report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price target on the oil and gas company’s stock. Bank of America‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 9.46% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company raised Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $172.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com lowered Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $158.60.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $137.04 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $139.77 and its 200-day moving average is $151.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $43.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.39. Valero Energy has a fifty-two week low of $119.88 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $34.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.97 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 21.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.40 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 9.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.