State of Tennessee Department of Treasury Cuts Stake in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury decreased its position in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,823 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,377 shares during the quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $1,766,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VVV. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Valvoline by 181.5% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 13,148 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $476,000 after acquiring an additional 8,478 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 78,338 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,834,000 after purchasing an additional 5,851 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Valvoline by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,608,067 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $94,362,000 after purchasing an additional 6,871 shares during the period. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI boosted its holdings in Valvoline by 35.1% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 4,221,275 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $152,726,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096,486 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Valvoline in the 4th quarter worth approximately $101,000. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valvoline Stock Down 0.7 %

VVV opened at $34.07 on Wednesday. Valvoline Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $31.02 and a fifty-two week high of $48.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $4.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.30 and a beta of 1.32. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $34.80 and its 200 day moving average is $37.40.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.01. Valvoline had a return on equity of 143.64% and a net margin of 16.34%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on VVV. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $38.00 price target (down from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Valvoline from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Valvoline from $41.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Valvoline from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valvoline has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valvoline

In other Valvoline news, insider Julie Marie O’daniel sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total value of $224,460.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,305 shares in the company, valued at $572,560.05. The trade was a 28.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

Valvoline Profile

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.