Manning & Napier Advisors LLC Sells 4,814 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 93,199 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,814 shares during the quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $11,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.8% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,293,589 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $174,673,000 after purchasing an additional 22,571 shares during the period. Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,897,000 after buying an additional 1,937 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $274,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $12,121,000 after acquiring an additional 6,278 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

VLO stock opened at $139.44 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.14 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.42. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $131.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $137.71. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $116.84 and a 12-month high of $184.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 30th. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on VLO shares. Scotiabank lowered 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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 note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Piper Sandler raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned 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, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $154.54.

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.