Westpac Banking Corp Increases Stock Position in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Westpac Banking Corp grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 168.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,456 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,542 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $640,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 3,400.0% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 105 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 134.0% during the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of VLO stock opened at $349.27 on Friday. Valero Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $352.70. The stock has a market cap of $100.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.55. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $292.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $253.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.11 by $2.43. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 26.74% and a net margin of 5.17%.The business had revenue of $44.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.28 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 48.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 40.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.92%.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $289.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $259.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $288.00.

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.