Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) Shares Bought by Blue Trust Inc.

Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) by 90.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,538 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,206 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $92,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Valvoline by 92.1% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 630 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valvoline in the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Valvoline by 466.7% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 1,275 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,050 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Valvoline by 46.5% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,465 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vestor Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Valvoline during the third quarter valued at about $69,000. 96.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valvoline Price Performance

Shares of VVV stock opened at $38.74 on Friday. Valvoline Inc. has a twelve month low of $33.90 and a twelve month high of $48.26. The company has a market capitalization of $4.97 billion, a PE ratio of 23.91 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.77. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.96.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.01. Valvoline had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 197.22%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valvoline

In other Valvoline news, CTO Robert Travis Dobbins sold 1,914 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $76,560.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 14,956 shares in the company, valued at $598,240. This represents a 11.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Charles M. Sonsteby bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $39.50 per share, with a total value of $395,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 26,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,044,261.50. The trade was a 60.84 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on VVV shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective (down from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Valvoline from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Stephens began coverage on shares of Valvoline in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $49.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valvoline currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.11.

About Valvoline

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.