Sienna Gestion Buys 334 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Sienna Gestion raised its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 0.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 38,347 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 334 shares during the period. Sienna Gestion’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $6,008,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 5.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,319,436 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $677,007,000 after acquiring an additional 237,347 shares during the last quarter. Putnam Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 3,445,821 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $447,957,000 after buying an additional 122,207 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 3.3% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,063,923 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $352,292,000 after buying an additional 65,632 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 37.6% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,558,750 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $266,040,000 after buying an additional 426,093 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 3.6% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,548,476 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $264,309,000 after acquiring an additional 53,789 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $136.76 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $145.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $155.24. Valero Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $119.88 and a 1-year high of $184.79. The firm has a market cap of $43.82 billion, a PE ratio of 6.77, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.40 EPS. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 12.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 1st. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 21.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VLO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Valero Energy from $178.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $171.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.36.

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.