Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Hits New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The stock traded as low as $117.01 and last traded at $117.11, with a volume of 249843 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $118.59.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VLO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup cut their price target on Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Piper Sandler cut Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $169.00 to $123.00 in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.07.

Valero Energy Stock Up 0.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $37.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $133.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $141.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The firm had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $7.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.39%.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,258 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,790,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 0.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 368,454 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $49,752,000 after purchasing an additional 3,065 shares during the last quarter. 1ST Source Bank boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 3.3% during the third quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 4,286 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $579,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,283,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 5.6% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,687,585 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $639,268,000 after buying an additional 247,630 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.