Ethic Inc. Has $6.96 Million Position in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Ethic Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 248.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 40,855 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 29,129 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $6,956,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Valero Energy by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,381 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $576,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 70.2% in the third quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 3.8% in the second quarter. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 1,864 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $251,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.6% in the third quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 11,467 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,952,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Quad Cities Investment Group LLC raised its position in Valero Energy by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quad Cities Investment Group LLC now owns 5,742 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $978,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO stock opened at $165.49 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.60. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $171.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $157.32. The company has a market capitalization of $50.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.76. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $99.00 and a 52-week high of $185.62.

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

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th were paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VLO. Barclays increased their price target on Valero Energy from $169.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $195.00 price target (down previously from $198.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $177.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $183.20.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other news, CFO Jason W. Fraser sold 9,933 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.02, for a total value of $1,728,540.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 134,196 shares in the company, valued at $23,352,787.92. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Valero Energy Company 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.