Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Shares Up 2.9% – Should You Buy?

Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO)’s stock price shot up 2.9% during trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $358.23 and last traded at $356.6360. Approximately 3,297,240 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 1% from the average session volume of 3,318,337 shares. The stock had previously closed at $346.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $485.00 to $489.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Valero Energy from $339.00 to $439.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $329.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised Valero Energy from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Valero Energy from $395.00 to $414.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $406.32.

Valero Energy Stock Up 2.9%

The company has a current ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $399.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $289.61. The company has a market cap of $102.69 billion, a PE ratio of 8.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 0.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The oil and gas company reported $23.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.17 by $2.73. The business had revenue of $46.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.71 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 45.90%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 43.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 57.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 24th. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 10.80%.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,027 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 1.0% in the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 2,608 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,011,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% in the third quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,317 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% in the third quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 7,171 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,779,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Valero Energy by 3.7% during the third quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 956 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $370,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is an international refiner and producer of transportation fuels and other petroleum products, headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. Its refining business processes crude oil and other feedstocks into products such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and petrochemical feedstocks.

The company markets and distributes fuels to wholesale customers and through branded distribution networks. Its refining operations span the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, with products serving customers in North America and other markets.

Valero also produces renewable fuels, including ethanol and renewable diesel.