Bessemer Group Inc. Trims Stock Position in Valvoline $VVV

Bessemer Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) by 65.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,204 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 19,651 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $344,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System purchased a new stake in shares of Valvoline during the first quarter worth approximately $203,000. Calamos Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valvoline during the first quarter worth $289,000. Calamos Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Valvoline in the 1st quarter valued at $289,000. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its position in Valvoline by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 30,615 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,031,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Valvoline by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 286,562 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,651,000 after buying an additional 13,938 shares during the period. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valvoline Stock Performance

Shares of VVV stock opened at $38.89 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $37.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 53.28 and a beta of 0.99. Valvoline has a 1 year low of $28.50 and a 1 year high of $41.33.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $503.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $495.67 million. Valvoline had a return on equity of 66.54% and a net margin of 5.03%.Valvoline’s revenue was up 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.34 earnings per share. Valvoline has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.650-1.750 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Valvoline will post 1.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on VVV shares. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Valvoline in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Valvoline from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, New Street Research set a $47.00 price objective on Valvoline in a report on Monday, July 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valvoline

In other Valvoline news, Director Richard Joseph Freeland purchased 3,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $32.37 per share, for a total transaction of $100,347.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,112 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $521,545.44. This trade represents a 23.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jennifer Lynn Slater acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $32.53 per share, with a total value of $32,530.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,530. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have bought 14,100 shares of company stock valued at $450,877. Insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

About Valvoline

Valvoline (NYSE: VVV) is a leading global producer and distributor of automotive and industrial lubricants. The company’s portfolio spans engine oils, gear oils, transmission fluids, greases, coolants and driveline products, all designed to help improve vehicle performance and longevity. Valvoline’s products are marketed under the Valvoline®, Valvoline NextGen® and Valvoline™ SynPower® brand names and are formulated to meet the stringent requirements of passenger cars, light trucks, heavy‐duty vehicles and off‐road applications.

In addition to its core lubricant business, Valvoline operates one of North America’s largest quick‐lubricant service networks through Valvoline Instant Oil Change℠ (VIOC).