Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Acquires 488 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 18.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,194 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VLO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.86.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE:VLO opened at $140.91 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $136.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $145.89. Valero Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $120.21 and a 1-year high of $184.79. The firm has a market cap of $44.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is currently 38.39%.

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.