Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Sold by Crescent Sterling Ltd.

Crescent Sterling Ltd. reduced its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 59.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,393 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,877 shares during the period. Crescent Sterling Ltd.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $456,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Keybank National Association OH increased its position in Valero Energy by 11.0% during the first quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 12,498 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,651,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Valero Energy by 9.6% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,536 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its position in Valero Energy by 1.7% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 27,561 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,640,000 after purchasing an additional 467 shares during the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its position in Valero Energy by 15.2% during the first quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 7,795 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Valero Energy by 3.5% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 373,052 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $49,269,000 after purchasing an additional 12,498 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of VLO stock opened at $169.66 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $162.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $142.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.09. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $99.00 and a 1-year high of $178.43. The firm has a market cap of $52.70 billion, a PE ratio of 35.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.05.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 1.21% and a return on equity of 8.69%. The business had revenue of $32.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 94.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on VLO. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $181.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $200.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup lowered shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $134.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $177.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.27.

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.