Quadrature Capital Ltd Acquires New Shares in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 35,904 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $4,848,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,293,589 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $174,673,000 after buying an additional 22,571 shares during the period. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $535,000. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $12,121,000 after purchasing an additional 6,278 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,956,743 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,090,532,000 after purchasing an additional 192,397 shares during the period. Finally, HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 136.1% in the 3rd quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 75,117 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $10,143,000 after purchasing an additional 43,299 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $173.00 to $141.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $155.86.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO stock traded down $1.55 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $131.50. The company had a trading volume of 1,984,240 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,914,111. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average of $137.07 and a 200-day moving average of $144.70. The company has a market capitalization of $41.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.79, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.39. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The business's revenue was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.49 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.39%.

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.