6,039 Shares in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Acquired by Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ

Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ bought a new position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 6,039 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,492,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,177,191 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,959,065,000 after purchasing an additional 163,975 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,950,982 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,945,500,000 after buying an additional 63,919 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $1,111,542,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,668,210 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $922,728,000 after buying an additional 394,693 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 5.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,143,672 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $705,502,000 after buying an additional 209,597 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE VLO opened at $267.99 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $249.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $220.63. Valero Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $130.78 and a twelve month high of $274.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company has a market capitalization of $79.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.48, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.55.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. The firm had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.89 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 28.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were paid a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total transaction of $2,011,275.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,742 shares in the company, valued at $5,294,212.14. This trade represents a 27.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VLO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen upped their target price on Valero Energy from $276.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Wolfe Research reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $203.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $261.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Valero Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $247.59.

Valero Energy Company Profile

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.