Piper Sandler Lowers Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Price Target to $144.00

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its price objective reduced by analysts at Piper Sandler from $149.00 to $144.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Piper Sandler’s price objective points to a potential upside of 13.39% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on VLO. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $156.08.

Valero Energy Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $127.00 on Friday. Valero Energy has a 52-week low of $116.84 and a 52-week high of $184.79. The company has a 50 day moving average of $132.76 and a 200 day moving average of $134.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market capitalization of $40.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Valero Energy will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,257,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,805,133 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,701,232 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,311,864,000 after purchasing an additional 413,963 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Valero Energy by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,938,335 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $973,119,000 after buying an additional 429,252 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Valero Energy by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,871,229 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $844,775,000 after buying an additional 100,248 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $669,400,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.