Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Boosts Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 245,800 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,800 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.08% of Valero Energy worth $30,133,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $14,751,000 after buying an additional 455 shares during the period. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Valero Energy by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,897,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $274,000. Finally, Patten Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $277,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on VLO shares. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Valero Energy from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $115.00 to $127.00 in a research note on Monday. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $149.80.

Valero Energy Stock Up 0.8 %

VLO traded up $0.88 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $114.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,600,493 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,010,825. The stock's 50-day moving average is $122.65 and its 200-day moving average is $129.52. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $99.00 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.53, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.27). The company had revenue of $28.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $28.54 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.82 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Profile

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.