Vanguard Group Inc. Purchases 4,805,133 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO - Free Report) by 16.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 4,805,133 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 10.97% of Valero Energy worth $4,257,024,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of 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 period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $132,469,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 900.2% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 631,095 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $85,217,000 after acquiring an additional 568,000 shares in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $70,352,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Valero Energy by 13.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on VLO. Mizuho dropped their price objective 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 raised Valero Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price 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, 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 report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $156.08.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

VLO stock traded up $0.07 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $132.02. 3,103,628 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,771,904. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $133.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $133.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market capitalization of $41.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $116.84 and a twelve month high of $184.79.

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

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. This is an increase from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. 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.