Silver Coast Investments LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Silver Coast Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,070 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the quarter. Silver Coast Investments LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Garrett Wealth Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Garrett Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 4,284 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $525,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 12,037 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,639,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 43.3% during the 4th quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 2,993 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $368,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $52,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 33.6% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 95,156 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $11,665,000 after purchasing an additional 23,929 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho cut their target price 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. Barclays cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $154.46.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE VLO opened at $130.59 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $41.34 billion, a PE ratio of 15.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $132.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $135.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $116.84 and a 52-week high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 53.30%.

Valero Energy Company 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.