New England Research & Management Inc. Increases Stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

New England Research & Management Inc. grew its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 121.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 6,975 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 3,825 shares during the period. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $942,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kwmg LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.7% during the third quarter. Kwmg LLC now owns 81,697 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $11,032,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,348 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,262,000 after purchasing an additional 567 shares during the period. Czech National Bank raised its stake in Valero Energy by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 65,264 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $8,813,000 after buying an additional 2,951 shares during the last quarter. Peoples Bank KS bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $211,000. Finally, Delta Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the third quarter worth $252,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VLO has been the topic of several research reports. Scotiabank raised their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $165.20.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO stock traded up $1.56 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $143.98. The company had a trading volume of 1,966,306 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,022,793. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $119.88 and a 12-month high of $184.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $142.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $153.68. The company has a market capitalization of $47.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.39.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.11. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 4.25%. The company had revenue of $34.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 1st. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is currently 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.