Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC Sells 3,925 Shares of Valvoline (NYSE:VVV)

Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC lessened its stake in Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) by 33.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,910 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,925 shares during the quarter. Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $275,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VVV. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Valvoline during the fourth quarter worth $54,114,000. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI lifted its holdings in Valvoline by 35.1% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 4,221,275 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $152,726,000 after acquiring an additional 1,096,486 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Valvoline by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 10,818,256 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $391,405,000 after acquiring an additional 1,080,114 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its holdings in Valvoline by 653.5% during the fourth quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 1,147,254 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,508,000 after acquiring an additional 994,988 shares during the period. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in Valvoline during the fourth quarter worth $35,051,000. Institutional investors own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Valvoline news, CEO Lori Ann Flees bought 3,000 shares of Valvoline stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $33.78 per share, for a total transaction of $101,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 46,614 shares in the company, valued at $1,574,620.92. This represents a 6.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Valvoline Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VVV opened at $39.07 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.97 billion, a PE ratio of 18.97 and a beta of 1.18. Valvoline has a fifty-two week low of $31.02 and a fifty-two week high of $48.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.23, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $36.11 and a 200-day moving average of $35.91.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The basic materials company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $403.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $405.38 million. Valvoline had a net margin of 15.97% and a return on equity of 106.36%. Valvoline’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valvoline will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on VVV. TD Securities began coverage on Valvoline in a report on Friday, April 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Valvoline from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Valvoline from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $44.00 target price (down from $45.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Cfra Research raised Valvoline to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valvoline presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.54.

Valvoline Profile

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.