Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. Grows Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 48.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,383 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $187,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the third quarter worth about $6,573,000. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% in the third quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 85,792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $11,584,000 after buying an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 183.4% in the third quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 7,726 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,043,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 3.0% in the third quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 51,625 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,971,000 after buying an additional 1,504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.3% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,430 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $463,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $139.82 on Wednesday. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $120.21 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $136.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $145.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market cap of $44.26 billion, a PE ratio of 12.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.39.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $7.49 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.06%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on VLO. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler cut Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $123.00 in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price objective 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 given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.86.

Valero Energy 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.