Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Shares Up 2.9% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) traded up 2.9% on Monday. The stock traded as high as $358.23 and last traded at $356.6360. Approximately 3,297,240 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 1% from the average session volume of 3,318,337 shares. The stock had previously closed at $346.45.

Key Headlines Impacting Valero Energy

These are some of the VLO headlines that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks added VLO to its Rank #1 (Strong Buy) growth-stocks list and highlighted above-average financial growth. Related Zacks coverage also cited refining strength and earnings potential, supporting the growth case. Best Growth Stocks to Buy for November 11th 3 Reasons Why Growth Investors Shouldn’t Overlook Valero Energy
• Positive Sentiment: Valero’s board affirmed its regular quarterly dividend of $1.20 per share, payable December 21 to shareholders of record November 24. The article also points to discounted heavy crude, favorable freight rates, and contributions from renewable diesel and ethanol as supportive factors. How Investors May Respond To Valero Energy Dividend Affirmation
• Negative Sentiment: Jim Cramer recommended selling VLO, arguing its two-year refining rally may have run its course and that margins could normalize further. This raises concern that strong recent refining results may not persist. Cramer Recommends Selling Valero Energy Stock

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on VLO shares. TD Cowen increased their price target on Valero Energy from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Bank of America raised their price target on Valero Energy from $395.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Valero Energy from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $434.00 to $436.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $457.00 to $496.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $406.32.

Valero Energy Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $399.49 and a 200-day moving average of $291.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.72. The company has a market cap of $101.58 billion, a PE ratio of 8.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 0.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The oil and gas company reported $23.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.17 by $2.73. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 45.90% and a net margin of 8.44%. The business had revenue of $46.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.66 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 43.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 57.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 24th. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.80%.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 11.4% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,033,310 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,243,630,000 after purchasing an additional 516,975 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,969,320 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $733,660,000 after buying an additional 254,604 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 18.4% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,842,339 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $702,285,000 after buying an additional 442,177 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 45.3% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,584,976 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $638,695,000 after buying an additional 806,018 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 33.9% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,058,341 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $536,074,000 after buying an additional 520,642 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is an international refiner and producer of transportation fuels and other petroleum products, headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. Its refining business processes crude oil and other feedstocks into products such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and petrochemical feedstocks. The company markets and distributes fuels to wholesale customers and through branded distribution networks. Its refining operations span the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, with products serving customers in North America and other markets.