Inspire Investing LLC Purchases 407 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 24.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,104 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 407 shares during the quarter. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $284,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, First Foundation Advisors bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter worth about $37,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VLO. Piper Sandler cut shares of Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $123.00 in a research report on Friday, September 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $158.60.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $137.04 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $139.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $151.58. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $119.88 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.39.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 9.41 EPS for the current year.

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.