Pinion Investment Advisors LLC Reduces Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Pinion Investment Advisors LLC lessened its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 7.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,138 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 248 shares during the period. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Valero Energy by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $14,751,000 after buying an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Valero Energy by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,897,000 after buying an additional 1,937 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $274,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in Valero Energy by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $12,121,000 after buying an additional 6,278 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO stock opened at $128.37 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $132.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $134.90. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $116.84 and a 52-week high of $184.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were given a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.52%. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 53.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on VLO shares. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Tudor Pickering raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $154.46.

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.