Viawealth LLC Has $1.61 Million Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Viawealth LLC lessened its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 6.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,552 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 848 shares during the quarter. Valero Energy accounts for approximately 1.3% of Viawealth LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Viawealth LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,613,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Sageworth Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 716.7% in the 1st quarter. Sageworth Trust Co now owns 196 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Live Oak Investment Partners bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 217.6% during the 1st quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 216 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 11,500.0% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 232 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on VLO. Tudor Pickering raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, July 31st. Bank of America downgraded Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $150.00 to $159.00 in a research note on Friday, August 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $152.69.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valero Energy news, Director Joseph W. Gorder sold 75,580 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.99, for a total value of $10,278,124.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 621,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $84,568,373.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $142.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.12. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $97.73 and a one year high of $150.39. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $126.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $123.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.17 billion, a PE ratio of 4.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.66.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The oil and gas company reported $5.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.08 by $0.32. Valero Energy had a net margin of 6.96% and a return on equity of 42.31%. The business had revenue of $34.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $11.36 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 33.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 24.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 3rd were given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 2nd. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.05%.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol. The company produces California Reformulated Gasoline Blendstock for Oxygenate Blending and Conventional Blendstock for Oxygenate Blending gasolines, CARB diesel, diesel, jet fuel, and asphalt; aromatics; and sulfur crude oils.