Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Plato Investment Management Ltd

Plato Investment Management Ltd lowered its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 72.5% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,790 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,722 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $281,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $570,428,000. Putnam Investments LLC grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 3,445,821 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $447,957,000 after acquiring an additional 122,207 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,063,923 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $352,292,000 after purchasing an additional 65,632 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 37.6% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,558,750 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $266,040,000 after purchasing an additional 426,093 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 3.6% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,548,476 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $264,309,000 after purchasing an additional 53,789 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $133.74 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Valero Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $119.88 and a 1-year high of $184.79. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $146.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $155.43. The company has a market capitalization of $43.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.62, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.40.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.97 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 21.01%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.40 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 12.3 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were given a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.20%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the topic of several research reports. Wolfe Research started coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com cut Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $171.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.36.

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.