4,264 Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Sold by Pinnacle Associates Ltd.

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. trimmed its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 4.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 82,232 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,264 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $31,874,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Moore Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $13,193,000. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 192,430 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $47,546,000 after acquiring an additional 7,702 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 58,558 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $15,251,000 after acquiring an additional 3,037 shares during the last quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $8,921,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 377.1% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 413,437 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $102,152,000 after acquiring an additional 326,777 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on VLO. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Valero Energy from $365.00 to $457.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Valero Energy from $255.00 to $411.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $389.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $467.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $300.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $382.62.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $433.85 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.23. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $156.26 and a 1-year high of $461.52. The stock has a market cap of $124.92 billion, a PE ratio of 18.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $387.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $306.74.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.11 by $2.43. The company had revenue of $44.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.47 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 26.74% and a net margin of 5.17%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 48.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 51.77 EPS for the current year.

Key Valero Energy News

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors are optimistic ahead of Valero’s third-quarter results, scheduled before the market opens on October 22. Higher refining margins are expected to support profitability and could reinforce the company’s strong earnings momentum. Valero Energy’s Q3 Earnings Approach: Higher Refining Margins Fuel Optimism
• Positive Sentiment: Valero was included in Zacks’ Rank #1, or “Strong Buy,” growth-stock list. The designation may attract additional interest, particularly as the company trades well above its longer-term moving averages and approaches its 52-week high. Best Growth Stocks to Buy for October 19th
• Positive Sentiment: A new $8 billion federal program to help farmers offset surging diesel costs highlights tight fuel markets and supply disruptions linked to Iran. Elevated diesel prices can improve refinery economics for Valero, although the longer-term effect depends on demand and the duration of the disruption. Trump announces $8B bailout for farmers to cover diesel cost surge
• Neutral Sentiment: Preview reports are focusing on estimates for Valero’s third-quarter revenue, earnings and operating metrics, making the October 22 release the key near-term catalyst. Valero previously exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, raising the bar for another beat. Insights Into Valero Energy Q3
• Negative Sentiment: DBS Bank downgraded Valero to Hold while assigning a $436 price target, indicating limited near-term upside after the stock’s substantial rally. The call could temper bullish sentiment ahead of earnings. DBS Bank Downgrades Valero Energy to Hold

Valero Energy Profile

Valero Energy Corporation is an international energy company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. The company’s primary business is refining and marketing transportation fuels, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other products used by commercial, industrial and consumer customers.

Valero operates refineries in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Its refining operations also produce asphalt, petrochemical feedstocks and other petroleum-based products. The company markets fuel through wholesale channels and branded retail networks, including Valero, Beacon and Shamrock-branded locations.

In addition to conventional refining, Valero has businesses focused on renewable fuels.