Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Cetera Investment Advisers

Cetera Investment Advisers lessened its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 14.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 95,015 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 15,454 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Valero Energy were worth $11,648,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Tobam bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Creative Capital Management Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 122.0% in the 4th quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC now owns 333 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VLO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Raymond James lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $144.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.53.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

VLO stock opened at $122.97 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $38.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.50, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $120.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $128.44. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $99.00 and a fifty-two week high of $167.78.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.27). Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The company had revenue of $28.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.82 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 159.72%.

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.