Prudential Financial Inc. Has $104.22 Million Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Prudential Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 159.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 850,161 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after acquiring an additional 522,233 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.27% of Valero Energy worth $104,221,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Tobam bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 196.8% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 276 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock traded down $1.77 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $131.46. 848,556 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,884,236. The stock has a market cap of $41.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.50, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $133.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $133.35. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $116.84 and a 12 month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 is a boost from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy's payout ratio is 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.