Mawer Investment Management Ltd. Buys 62,493 Shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV - Free Report) by 14.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 500,482 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 62,493 shares during the quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.39% of Valvoline worth $18,107,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in Valvoline by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 114,598 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,796,000 after purchasing an additional 14,962 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 9.2% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,498 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,234,000 after buying an additional 2,482 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of Valvoline by 438.7% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 308,699 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $12,919,000 after acquiring an additional 251,398 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 74,286 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,109,000 after acquiring an additional 5,030 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Isthmus Partners LLC bought a new stake in Valvoline during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $362,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.13% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other Valvoline news, insider Julie Marie O'daniel sold 6,000 shares of the 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 15,305 shares in the company, valued at $572,560.05. This represents a 28.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Valvoline Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of Valvoline stock traded down $0.78 during trading on Thursday, hitting $35.06. 584,559 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,314,947. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.78 and a beta of 1.32. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $36.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Valvoline Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.90 and a 1-year high of $48.27.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts expect that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Valvoline from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Valvoline in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $42.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Valvoline from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $38.00 price objective (down 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, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.40.

Valvoline Company 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.