Optimum Investment Advisors Sells 250 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Optimum Investment Advisors trimmed its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,125 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 250 shares during the quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors’ holdings in Valero Energy were worth $383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VLO. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Tobam bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 196.8% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 276 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on VLO shares. Mizuho cut their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $156.08.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO opened at $131.42 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $133.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.43. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $116.84 and a 1 year high of $184.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.39 billion, a PE ratio of 15.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.44%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

About Valero Energy

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.