Applied Finance Capital Management LLC Acquires 5,203 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 178,293 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 5,203 shares during the period. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Valero Energy worth $21,857,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 46.2% during the 4th quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC now owns 27,056 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,317,000 after acquiring an additional 8,556 shares in the last quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,425 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,749,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 26.4% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 139,875 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $17,578,000 after purchasing an additional 29,215 shares in the last quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. now owns 3,660 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $449,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Valero Energy by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 465,888 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $57,066,000 after purchasing an additional 27,850 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Valero Energy Stock Performance

Valero Energy stock traded up $1.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $110.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,775,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,976,695. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $127.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $131.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $99.00 and a 12-month high of $178.39. The company has a market capitalization of $34.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.04, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.17.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were given a $1.13 dividend. This is a positive change from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VLO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank cut their target price on Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Tudor Pickering raised Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $152.46.

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.