Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Receives $151.93 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) have been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $151.93.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank cut their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $158.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $140.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Valero Energy stock opened at $128.63 on Monday. 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 has a 52 week low of $99.00 and a 52 week high of $167.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.98. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $121.20 and a 200-day moving average of $128.59.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.27). Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. The business had revenue of $28.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.82 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 159.72%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valero Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,881,222 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,135,043,000 after purchasing an additional 4,155,522 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.9% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,437,765 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,510,586,000 after buying an additional 736,533 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 276.9% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,795,436 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,425,754,000 after buying an additional 7,931,018 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Valero Energy by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,938,335 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $973,119,000 after buying an additional 429,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,871,229 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $844,775,000 after acquiring an additional 100,248 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.