Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Purchased by QRG Capital Management Inc.

QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 80,601 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,798 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $12,635,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First National Corp MA ADV lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. First National Corp MA ADV now owns 4,692 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $735,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Valero Energy by 2.9% in the second quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 46,986 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,366,000 after buying an additional 1,334 shares during the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 1.3% during the second quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 16,451 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,579,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at about $15,945,000. Finally, First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 10.9% in the 2nd quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services now owns 26,562 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,164,000 after acquiring an additional 2,604 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VLO. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com cut Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 target price for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.00.

Valero Energy Stock Down 0.3 %

VLO stock traded down $0.53 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $151.08. 1,568,123 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,042,393. The company has a market cap of $49.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.48. Valero Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $119.88 and a 1-year high of $184.79. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $152.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $154.94.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.97 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 21.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.40 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 1st will be paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.20%.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.