Clearbridge Investments LLC Makes New $5.34 Million Investment in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Clearbridge Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 123,657 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $5,342,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned about 0.10% of Valvoline as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Valvoline in the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,835,000. Invst LLC acquired a new position in Valvoline in the 2nd quarter valued at about $647,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Valvoline by 46.6% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,698 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 45.5% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 43,326 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,872,000 after buying an additional 13,544 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC bought a new position in shares of Valvoline during the second quarter worth approximately $2,644,000. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VVV has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Valvoline from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Valvoline from $54.00 to $48.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Valvoline to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Valvoline from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird started coverage on Valvoline in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $48.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.57.

Valvoline Stock Performance

VVV traded up $0.69 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $41.27. The company had a trading volume of 1,471,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,207,263. Valvoline Inc. has a 1 year low of $29.15 and a 1 year high of $48.26. The company has a market cap of $5.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.75 and a beta of 1.45. The business has a 50-day moving average of $41.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.57.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The basic materials company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.03). Valvoline had a net margin of 10.45% and a return on equity of 182.88%. The firm had revenue of $421.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $425.17 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valvoline declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the basic materials company to buy up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

About Valvoline

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.