Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Ensign Peak Advisors Inc

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lowered its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 417,355 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 19,358 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $51,164,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Tobam acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Creative Capital Management Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 122.0% in the fourth quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC now owns 333 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $121.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.53.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VLO opened at $122.97 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $120.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $128.47. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $99.00 and a 12 month high of $167.78.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.27). Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. The firm had revenue of $28.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.68%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 159.72%.

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.