Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC Buys New Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,499 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $256,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. First Foundation Advisors bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total transaction of $113,846.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,105,209.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 14th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Valero Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $172.07.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE VLO traded up $2.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $159.12. The company had a trading volume of 3,151,478 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,537,062. The company has a market capitalization of $52.03 billion, a PE ratio of 7.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $153.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $153.18. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $119.88 and a twelve month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.11. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 20.97% and a net margin of 4.25%. The company had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.40 EPS. Valero Energy’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.20%.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.