Redwood Investment Management LLC Sells 2,636 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Redwood Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 38.4% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,227 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,636 shares during the quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,177,191 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,959,065,000 after acquiring an additional 163,975 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,950,982 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,945,500,000 after purchasing an additional 63,919 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,111,542,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,668,210 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $922,728,000 after acquiring an additional 394,693 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,033,310 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,243,630,000 after purchasing an additional 516,975 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Down 1.7%

NYSE:VLO opened at $307.53 on Tuesday. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $130.78 and a 1 year high of $320.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market cap of $91.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.76, a PEG ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $271.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $239.99.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.11 by $2.43. The business had revenue of $44.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.47 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 26.74% and a net margin of 5.17%.Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 48.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.28 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 36.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total value of $2,011,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,742 shares in the company, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VLO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $203.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $232.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $287.35.

More Valero Energy News

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen raised its price target for Valero Energy from $338 to $350, implying further upside, although it maintained a “hold” rating. Benzinga analyst update
• Positive Sentiment: Another analyst update raised Valero’s price target to $356, adding to the constructive view of the refiner’s earnings and cash-flow outlook. Valero Energy price target raised
• Positive Sentiment: Valero was highlighted among large-cap companies involved in more than $10 billion of combined buybacks. Repurchases can support earnings per share and signal management confidence following strong operating performance. Large-cap buybacks article
• Positive Sentiment: Valero also appeared on screens of highly ranked stocks expected to beat upcoming earnings estimates, reflecting optimism about refining demand and margins. Zacks potential earnings beats
• Neutral Sentiment: Piper Sandler reiterated its “buy” rating, while a separate valuation analysis described Valero’s cash flow as attractive but its earnings multiple as relatively rich. Piper Sandler rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Higher oil prices linked to geopolitical tensions may support refining-sector sentiment, but the broader ETF commentary is not specific to Valero’s operations. July iShares ETF performance

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.