Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. Trims Stake in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. cut its stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,054 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 102 shares during the period. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 1.0% in the second quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 31,332 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,212,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Collective Family Office LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 3.1% in the second quarter. Collective Family Office LLC now owns 5,296 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $712,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. City Center Advisors LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 4.3% in the second quarter. City Center Advisors LLC now owns 2,330 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $313,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the first quarter worth $5,359,000. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 18.9% in the first quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 207,823 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,447,000 after acquiring an additional 33,003 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Valero Energy stock opened at $156.78 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $145.24 and a 200-day moving average of $132.89. The firm has a market cap of $48.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $99.00 and a 1-year high of $163.02.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The oil and gas company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.62. The company had revenue of $29.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 0.62% and a return on equity of 5.76%. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.71 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 188.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VLO has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $152.00 to $179.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $171.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup cut Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $134.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $151.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $158.87.

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.