Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Sold by Yousif Capital Management LLC

Yousif Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,499 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 3,286 shares during the quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $8,598,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 1,812 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. CW Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at $361,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 15.5% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 49,961 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,598,000 after acquiring an additional 6,722 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth $1,529,000. Finally, Comerica Bank grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 72,541 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $9,581,000 after acquiring an additional 1,258 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Valero Energy from $181.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $195.00 price objective (down previously from $198.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, December 11th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $183.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $135.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $183.20.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:VLO opened at $164.74 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $171.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $99.00 and a 12-month high of $185.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.76.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.51. The business had revenue of $32.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.80 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 1.21% and a return on equity of 8.69%. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.14 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is currently 94.36%.

Insider Activity at Valero Energy

In related news, CFO Jason W. Fraser sold 9,933 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.02, for a total value of $1,728,540.66. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 134,196 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,352,787.92. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company’s operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.