Bessemer Group Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 18.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,106 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 3,200 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,465,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VLO. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $14,751,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,897,000 after buying an additional 1,937 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $274,000. Finally, Patten Group Inc. purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $277,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO stock traded up $2.85 on Friday, reaching $109.98. The stock had a trading volume of 2,662,747 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,990,067. The stock has a market cap of $34.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $99.00 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $125.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $130.83.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Equities research analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VLO. Mizuho decreased 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 note on Wednesday, January 8th. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James cut their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $156.00 to $136.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $152.46.

About Valero Energy

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.