Commerce Bank Acquires 9,292 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Commerce Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 16.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 66,188 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 9,292 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $8,604,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $570,428,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 12,883.3% during the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 1,039,293 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in Valero Energy by 94.4% in the third quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,429,706 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $202,585,000 after buying an additional 694,224 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 6.1% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,961,603 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,269,949,000 after buying an additional 517,068 shares during the period. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 18.7% during 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 in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Argus lowered Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $179.00 to $173.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $173.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.87.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:VLO traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $162.42. 1,794,632 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,571,529. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $166.50 and its 200-day moving average is $144.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.55. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $105.66 and a 12-month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.64. Valero Energy had a net margin of 5.01% and a return on equity of 24.82%. The firm had revenue of $31.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $8.27 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 18.11 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 29th. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 21.20%.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In related news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total transaction of $113,846.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,314 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,105,209.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.