Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Announces Dividend Increase – $1.13 Per Share

Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, January 16th,RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be given a dividend of 1.13 per share by the oil and gas company on Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.24%. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07.

Valero Energy has raised its dividend payment by an average of 3.0% annually over the last three years. Valero Energy has a dividend payout ratio of 38.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Valero Energy to earn $8.20 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.28 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 52.2%.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE:VLO opened at $139.51 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $131.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.59. The stock has a market cap of $44.17 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. Valero Energy has a one year low of $116.84 and a one year high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $7.49 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 7.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup cut their target price on Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Barclays cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $154.57.

About Valero Energy

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.