Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Stock Gets Price Target Increase from Morgan Stanley

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its price objective hoisted by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from $411.00 to $420.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Morgan Stanley‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 8.82% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Valero Energy from $485.00 to $489.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Valero Energy from $395.00 to $414.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $300.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $401.00 to $394.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $485.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $380.47.

Valero Energy Stock Down 3.4%

VLO stock traded down $13.71 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $385.95. 1,558,576 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,293,171. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.72. Valero Energy has a 1-year low of $159.90 and a 1-year high of $461.52. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $397.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $285.06. The firm has a market cap of $111.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 0.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The oil and gas company reported $23.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $21.17 by $2.73. Valero Energy had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 45.90%. The company had revenue of $46.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $42.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.66 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 43.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy will post 57.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valero Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,027 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $398,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 2,608 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,011,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp increased its stake in Valero Energy by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 7,171 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,779,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Modera Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 3.7% in the third quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 956 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Financial Management LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 57.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC now owns 104 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is an international energy company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. The company’s primary business is refining and marketing transportation fuels, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other products used by commercial, industrial and consumer customers.

Valero operates refineries in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Its refining operations also produce asphalt, petrochemical feedstocks and other petroleum-based products. The company markets fuel through wholesale channels and branded retail networks, including Valero, Beacon and Shamrock-branded locations.

In addition to conventional refining, Valero has businesses focused on renewable fuels.