Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by State of Alaska Department of Revenue

State of Alaska Department of Revenue trimmed its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 11.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 61,479 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 7,785 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $10,493,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the first quarter valued at $33,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 40.3% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 303 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on VLO shares. Mizuho cut their target price on Valero Energy from $176.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Barclays cut their price target on Valero Energy from $173.00 to $171.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Bank of America raised Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $156.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valero Energy

In other news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total transaction of $113,846.40. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,314 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,105,209.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO stock opened at $158.55 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.84 billion, a PE ratio of 7.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.42. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $112.16 and a one year high of $184.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $157.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $150.88.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.64. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 24.82% and a net margin of 5.01%. The firm had revenue of $31.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $8.27 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 16.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 30th were given a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 30th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

About Valero Energy

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.