2,708 Shares in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Bought by Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.

Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,708 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $461,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 70.2% during the 3rd 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. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 145.3% in the third quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 211 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1,277.8% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 248 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO stock opened at $200.73 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $182.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market cap of $61.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.77. Valero Energy Corporation has a one year low of $99.00 and a one year high of $206.77.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.55. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 1.91%.The firm had revenue of $30.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.64 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 5th will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 62.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VLO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $216.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Erste Group Bank began coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Monday, November 10th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.67.

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.