Legal & General Group Plc Reduces Stake in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Legal & General Group Plc lowered its stake in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV - Free Report) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 207,978 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 11,746 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.16% of Valvoline worth $7,525,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its stake in Valvoline by 17.6% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 13,624 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $570,000 after acquiring an additional 2,035 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its stake in Valvoline by 52.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 53,580 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,242,000 after buying an additional 18,414 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Valvoline by 2.5% during 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 purchasing an additional 54,545 shares during the last quarter. Invst LLC increased its holdings in Valvoline by 3.7% during the third quarter. Invst LLC now owns 15,931 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $667,000 after buying an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Valvoline by 25.5% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 9,060 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 1,838 shares during the period. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

VVV has been the subject of several analyst reports. 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. TD Cowen started coverage on Valvoline in a research note on Friday, April 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho dropped their target price on Valvoline from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. TD Securities began coverage on Valvoline in a report on Friday, April 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $40.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $38.00 price target (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valvoline presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.67.

Valvoline Trading Up 0.8 %

VVV stock traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $34.52. 301,133 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,367,100. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.53 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.70. The business has a 50 day moving average of $35.12 and a 200-day moving average of $37.58. Valvoline Inc. has a 52-week low of $31.02 and a 52-week high of $48.27.

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

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.