Paragon Capital Management Inc. Has $1.51 Million Stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO)

Paragon Capital Management Inc. lowered its holdings in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 19.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,455 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,810 shares during the quarter. Valero Energy comprises about 1.2% of Paragon Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Paragon Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,513,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $669,400,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 4,805,133 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 15,395.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,355,699 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $179,047,000 after acquiring an additional 1,346,950 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth $132,469,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $98,376,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $137.04 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $127.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $127.69. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $99.00 and a 52-week high of $167.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.92 billion, a PE ratio of 48.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.99.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.27). Valero Energy had a net margin of 0.72% and a return on equity of 6.30%. The company had revenue of $28.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.82 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were paid a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 159.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on VLO. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price target on 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $150.88.

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.