Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Price Target Raised to $302.00 at Citigroup

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its price target upped by equities researchers at Citigroup from $259.00 to $302.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 1.65% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Mizuho raised their target price on Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Valero Energy from $236.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $276.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $253.06.

Valero Energy Stock Up 0.4%

Valero Energy stock traded up $1.30 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $297.09. The stock had a trading volume of 922,937 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,473,026. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.22 billion, a PE ratio of 21.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 0.55. Valero Energy has a fifty-two week low of $130.78 and a fifty-two week high of $300.10. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $254.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $225.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The company had revenue of $32.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Valero Energy will post 31.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total value of $2,011,275.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,742 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valero Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ballast Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ballast Inc. now owns 6,217 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,619,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy during the second quarter worth about $205,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the second quarter worth about $286,000. Tema ETFs LLC raised its position in Valero Energy by 10.2% in the second quarter. Tema ETFs LLC now owns 6,270 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,633,000 after acquiring an additional 580 shares during the period. Finally, HRC Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the second quarter valued at about $208,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Valero Energy

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.