GQG Partners LLC Has $6.92 Million Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

GQG Partners LLC decreased its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 21.6% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 26,587 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 7,325 shares during the quarter. GQG Partners LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $6,924,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VLO. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.9% in 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 buying an additional 163,975 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 63,919 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $1,111,542,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,033,310 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,243,630,000 after purchasing an additional 516,975 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup raised their target price on Valero Energy from $259.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $289.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $279.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $288.00.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO stock opened at $349.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $292.93 and a 200-day moving average of $253.69. Valero Energy Corporation has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $352.70. The company has a market cap of $100.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.55.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.11 by $2.43. The business had revenue of $44.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.47 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 5.17% and a return on equity of 26.74%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 48.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.28 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 40.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.92%.

Insider Activity 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 transaction of $2,011,275.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,294,212.14. This trade represents a 27.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

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.