Raymond James Financial Inc. Purchases Shares of 260,362 Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 260,362 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $9,420,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.20% of Valvoline as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Valvoline by 0.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,096,436 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $171,436,000 after buying an additional 16,916 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in Valvoline by 118.2% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 67,948 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,844,000 after acquiring an additional 36,814 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Valvoline by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,226,769 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $93,215,000 after acquiring an additional 54,545 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Valvoline by 52.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 53,580 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,242,000 after acquiring an additional 18,414 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valvoline during the fourth quarter worth approximately $9,095,000. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Activity

In other Valvoline news, insider Julie Marie O'daniel sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total transaction of $224,460.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,305 shares in the company, valued at approximately $572,560.05. This trade represents a 28.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.66% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Valvoline Trading Down 2.9 %

VVV traded down $1.05 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $34.87. 1,730,039 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,272,888. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.68 and a beta of 1.48. Valvoline Inc. has a one year low of $33.90 and a one year high of $48.27. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $36.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.70.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.01. Valvoline had a net margin of 16.34% and a return on equity of 143.64%. As a group, analysts forecast that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VVV. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $38.00 target price (down from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Mizuho cut their price target on Valvoline from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Valvoline from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on Valvoline in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set a "hold" rating and a $42.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.40.

Valvoline Profile

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.