Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Holdings Lowered by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 756,411 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 17,892 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.24% of Valero Energy worth $102,138,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Valero Energy from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $123.00 in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Scotiabank decreased their target price 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. Finally, StockNews.com cut Valero Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $155.86.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VLO traded down $1.02 during trading on Thursday, reaching $138.54. The company had a trading volume of 1,214,851 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,946,427. The firm's fifty day moving average is $135.62 and its 200 day moving average is $146.75. 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 has a market capitalization of $43.86 billion, a PE ratio of 12.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.39. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $120.21 and a twelve month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.49 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 9.1 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Valero Energy's payout ratio is currently 38.39%.

Valero Energy 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.