Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Has $5.18 Million Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 71.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,894 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,323 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $5,181,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its stake in Valero Energy by 3,400.0% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 105 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 134.0% during the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total transaction of $2,011,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,742 shares in the company, valued at $5,294,212.14. This trade represents a 27.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VLO. Scotiabank increased their target price on Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $292.00 to $356.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $338.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $289.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $232.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $288.00.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VLO opened at $341.36 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $98.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s 50-day moving average is $283.92 and its 200 day moving average is $247.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.64. Valero Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $135.01 and a fifty-two week high of $346.09.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.11 by $2.43. The business had revenue of $44.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.47 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 5.17% and a return on equity of 26.74%. The firm’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. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 40.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.92%.

About Valero Energy

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.