Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Sold by Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund trimmed its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 34.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 162,057 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 86,240 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned 0.05% of Valero Energy worth $26,381,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. AXS Investments LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its stake in Valero Energy by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 206 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $255.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $203.00 target price on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $246.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.59.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $247.12 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $245.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.33. The company has a market cap of $73.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 0.55. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $130.78 and a 12-month high of $265.61.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The business had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The business’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 26.83 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Valero Energy Profile

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.