Unigestion Holding SA Takes $4.33 Million Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Unigestion Holding SA purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 32,058 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $4,329,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. M&G Plc bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the second quarter worth $2,963,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the second quarter worth $87,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 3.9% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 19,449 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,049,000 after buying an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Valero Energy by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,129 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $647,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. Finally, 180 Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $535,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $155.50.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

VLO stock traded up $1.00 on Wednesday, hitting $133.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,348,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,909,896. The stock has a market cap of $42.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $136.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $143.82. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $120.21 and a 1 year high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. Valero Energy's quarterly revenue was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $7.49 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.39%.

About Valero Energy

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.