Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) Rating Lowered to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Sunday.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on VVV. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Valvoline from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Valvoline from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Valvoline from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Zacks Research upgraded Valvoline to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Cfra Research raised Valvoline to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.77.

Valvoline Stock Performance

NYSE VVV opened at $39.74 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $38.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.15. The stock has a market cap of $5.05 billion, a PE ratio of 18.48 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.73. Valvoline has a fifty-two week low of $31.01 and a fifty-two week high of $43.74.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $439.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $436.35 million. Valvoline had a net margin of 16.43% and a return on equity of 84.85%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Valvoline will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valvoline

In other news, CFO J Kevin Willis bought 12,725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $39.41 per share, with a total value of $501,492.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 12,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $501,492.25. This represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Valvoline

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valvoline by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,419 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $281,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Valvoline by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 21,425 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $775,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 1.0% during the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 28,510 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,080,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP boosted its position in shares of Valvoline by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP now owns 18,440 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $698,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Isthmus Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Valvoline by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 9,544 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $332,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Valvoline

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.