Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Reduces Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc cut its holdings in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 375,828 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 12,562 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $50,519,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. Hoey Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. GFG Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 1,277.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 248 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management increased its position in Valero Energy by 39.9% during the first quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 333 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $169.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $181.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Erste Group Bank initiated coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Monday, November 10th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Valero Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $182.00.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Valero Energy stock opened at $170.80 on Friday. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $99.00 and a 1 year high of $185.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $168.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.11. The company has a market cap of $52.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.66, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.01.

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 company 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 was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 94.36%.

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.