Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. Invests $41.86 Million in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 257,039 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,855,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of VLO. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 975 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,610 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,564,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 3,788 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $617,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 16,268 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,651,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Montecito Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Montecito Bank & Trust now owns 3,909 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $636,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO stock opened at $245.08 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $242.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $207.03. The stock has a market cap of $72.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.81, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 0.58. Valero Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $125.10 and a fifty-two week high of $263.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The firm had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.89 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 26.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 34.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.60, for a total transaction of $95,440.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the subject of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Zacks Research upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Wolfe Research reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $203.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.65.

Valero Energy Profile

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.