First Trust Advisors LP Acquires 48,130 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 11.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 481,526 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 48,130 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.15% of Valero Energy worth $59,030,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $669,400,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $4,257,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,805,133 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $132,469,000. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 159.3% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 850,161 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $104,221,000 after acquiring an additional 522,233 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,072,188 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $499,210,000 after purchasing an additional 487,022 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE VLO traded up $0.51 on Friday, reaching $113.87. The company had a trading volume of 2,865,096 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,008,681. Valero Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $99.00 and a 52 week high of $168.85. The stock's 50 day moving average is $123.10 and its 200-day moving average is $129.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $35.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.43, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.17.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.27). Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The company had revenue of $28.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.54 billion. Equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on VLO. Scotiabank reduced their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $150.36.

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.