Vontobel Holding Ltd. Boosts Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 13.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,529 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 1,359 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,413,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Creative Planning boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 3.8% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 84,573 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $11,420,000 after buying an additional 3,097 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 7.4% during the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,540 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares during the last quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter worth $334,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 132.7% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,643 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 1,507 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.5% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 813,274 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $109,816,000 after purchasing an additional 49,884 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on VLO shares. Citigroup decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $154.46.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $135.49 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.89 billion, a PE ratio of 15.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $130.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.15. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $116.84 and a one year high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Research analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.34%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

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.