Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC decreased its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 18.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 65,712 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 14,788 shares during the quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $17,114,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 3,400.0% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 105 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 134.0% during the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VLO opened at $341.30 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $291.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $253.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $137.88 and a 52 week high of $352.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.16, a PEG ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.55.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.11 by $2.43. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 26.74% and a net margin of 5.17%.The business had revenue of $44.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.28 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 48.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 40.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 19.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $279.00 to $323.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Mizuho boosted their target price on Valero Energy from $289.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Valero Energy from $232.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $286.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $280.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $288.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total transaction of $2,011,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,742 shares in the company, valued at $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company’s operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.