National Pension Service Has $79.56 Million Position in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

National Pension Service lowered its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 488,721 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,413 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.16% of Valero Energy worth $79,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 5.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,143,672 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $705,502,000 after purchasing an additional 209,597 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 42,376 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,898,000 after purchasing an additional 10,634 shares during the period. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 13.7% in the third quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 115,183 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $19,612,000 after purchasing an additional 13,923 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $954,000. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 359.0% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 14,243 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,319,000 after purchasing an additional 11,140 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE:VLO opened at $245.08 on Friday. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $125.10 and a 52 week high of $263.75. The firm has a market cap of $72.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $242.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $207.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 26.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 8,311 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.69, for a total value of $1,892,331.59. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 42,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,618,080.98. This trade represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VLO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $255.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $246.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.65.

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.