Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $177.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley downgraded Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Friday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $216.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup downgraded Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $134.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Valero Energy from $135.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.27.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $170.92 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $158.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $141.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Valero Energy has a 12 month low of $99.00 and a 12 month high of $178.43. The company has a market cap of $53.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.05.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.51. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 8.69% and a net margin of 1.21%.The business had revenue of $32.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.80 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Valero Energy by 12.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,881,222 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,135,043,000 after purchasing an additional 4,155,522 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Valero Energy by 2.5% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,724,707 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,576,035,000 after purchasing an additional 286,942 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised 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 valued at $1,425,754,000 after acquiring an additional 7,931,018 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 16.7% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,141,511 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,089,897,000 after acquiring an additional 1,164,217 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at about $827,390,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Company 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.