Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Price Target Increased to $172.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its price objective increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $165.00 to $172.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the oil and gas company’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Scotiabank upped their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a sector outperform rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Mizuho upgraded Valero Energy from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and upped their price target for the company from $165.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an outperform rating and a $177.00 target price on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $171.00 to $165.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Argus cut Valero Energy from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $174.50.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $134.20 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.65, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.40. Valero Energy has a one year low of $119.88 and a one year high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.11. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 4.25%. The firm had revenue of $34.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 1st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.20%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. 9258 Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,704 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 5,146 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $669,000 after buying an additional 513 shares during the last quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. bought a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $557,000. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 54.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 46,301 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,019,000 after purchasing an additional 16,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 93.6% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,373 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $958,000 after purchasing an additional 3,565 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

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.