The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 17,409 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 2.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 721,937 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 17,409 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.22% of Valero Energy worth $113,170,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wolfe Research started coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.07.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:VLO opened at $135.95 on Friday. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $119.88 and a 1 year high of $184.79. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $144.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $154.71. 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 cap of $43.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.40.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.97 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 4.25%. The firm’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.40 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 10.77 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.15%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.20%.

Valero Energy Company Profile

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.