Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Sold by Measured Risk Portfolios Inc.

Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 90.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 934 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 9,050 shares during the quarter. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $231,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its stake in Valero Energy by 3,400.0% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 105 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 134.0% in the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $304.99 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $266.16 and its 200-day moving average is $235.67. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $130.78 and a 12-month high of $320.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.55.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The business had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.89 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 36.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valero Energy

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy 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 directly owned 19,742 shares in the company, valued at $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $259.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Valero Energy from $232.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Raymond James Financial increased their price target on Valero Energy from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $329.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $266.71.

Valero Energy Company Profile

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.