Mizuho Securities USA LLC Buys 9,230 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 44.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,005 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 9,230 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Valero Energy were worth $3,678,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $134,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 18.0% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,194 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 14,747 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,991,000 after acquiring an additional 1,285 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 10,335 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,395,000 after buying an additional 446 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 34.6% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 110,660 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $14,942,000 after acquiring an additional 28,441 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $152.67.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE VLO traded down $1.38 during trading on Thursday, reaching $133.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,405,165 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,769,551. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $116.84 and a one year high of $184.79. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $133.81 and a 200 day moving average of $133.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.94 billion, a PE ratio of 15.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.39%. This is a boost from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy's payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

Valero Energy Company 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.