Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Stake Cut by Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC

Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 57.9% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,127 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 5,672 shares during the period. Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,020,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter worth $27,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. AXS Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 157.0% in the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 203 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.90, for a total transaction of $1,776,750.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 27,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,453,629.80. This trade represents a 21.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on VLO. Mizuho upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $184.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.59.

Valero Energy Stock Up 1.6%

VLO stock opened at $259.05 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $246.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $217.36. The company has a market capitalization of $76.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 0.55. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $130.78 and a 52 week high of $265.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The business had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.38 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 27.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.88%.

Valero Energy Company Profile

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.