Alliancebernstein L.P. Raises Stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 483,740 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,456 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned approximately 0.15% of Valero Energy worth $59,302,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $669,400,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $4,257,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,805,133 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 4,908.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,850,526 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $384,907,000 after purchasing an additional 2,793,607 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $132,469,000. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 worth $104,221,000 after purchasing an additional 522,233 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Mizuho dropped 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 note on Wednesday, January 8th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $152.85.

Valero Energy Trading Down 7.1 %

VLO traded down $8.24 during trading on Thursday, hitting $107.66. 1,152,876 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,959,200. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.77, 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 current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $129.18 and a 200 day moving average of $132.05. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $99.00 and a 12-month high of $178.39.

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

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th were given 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.20%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.30%.

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.