Petredis Investment Advisors LLC Sells 1,543 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Petredis Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 48,075 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,543 shares during the quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $5,894,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 196.8% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 276 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VLO shares. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $173.00 to $141.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $154.57.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:VLO opened at $139.80 on Friday. 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 Co. has a fifty-two week low of $116.84 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $131.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $137.98. The firm has a market cap of $44.26 billion, a PE ratio of 12.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The company’s revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $7.49 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.23%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.39%.

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.