Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Stock Sold by Providence First Trust Co

Providence First Trust Co cut its position in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 50.9% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,864 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,930 shares during the quarter. Providence First Trust Co’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $723,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 3,400.0% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 105 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 57.6% during the second quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC now owns 104 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 134.0% during the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Balance Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock traded down $4.94 on Friday, hitting $346.29. The company had a trading volume of 3,336,461 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,752,991. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $399.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $289.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.72 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The company has a market cap of $99.71 billion, a PE ratio of 7.79, a PEG ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.58. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $159.90 and a 52 week high of $461.52.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The oil and gas company reported $23.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.17 by $2.73. Valero Energy had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 45.90%. The business had revenue of $46.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.66 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 43.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 57.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 24th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on VLO shares. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on Valero Energy from $450.00 to $530.00 in a report on Monday, October 19th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $455.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $467.00 price target (up from $355.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Mizuho raised their price target on Valero Energy from $434.00 to $436.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Finally, Freedom Broker cut shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $276.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $406.32.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is an international refiner and producer of transportation fuels and other petroleum products, headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. Its refining business processes crude oil and other feedstocks into products such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and petrochemical feedstocks.

The company markets and distributes fuels to wholesale customers and through branded distribution networks. Its refining operations span the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, with products serving customers in North America and other markets.

Valero also produces renewable fuels, including ethanol and renewable diesel.