Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $242.56 and last traded at $239.2710, with a volume of 841778 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $235.96.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on VLO. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Argus raised shares of Valero Energy to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $193.20.

Valero Energy Stock Up 1.4%

The firm has a market cap of $72.32 billion, a PE ratio of 31.66, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $202.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $180.03.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $30.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.20 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 12.35%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.64 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were given a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is currently 62.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valero Energy

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 400 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.60, for a total transaction of $95,440.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 975 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 32.9% during the 4th quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 206 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Valero Energy by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,610 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,564,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 3,788 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $617,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 16,268 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,651,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company’s operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.