Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Raises Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 26.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 80,124 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 16,654 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $12,543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Collective Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.5% in the first quarter. Collective Family Office LLC now owns 4,040 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $690,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,327 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $227,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,970 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $309,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Aua Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Valero Energy by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Aua Capital Management LLC now owns 2,261 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $386,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OmniStar Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.6% during the second quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,543 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $712,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of VLO stock opened at $138.67 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $44.43 billion, a PE ratio of 6.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.40. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $119.88 and a 1 year high of $184.79. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $145.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $155.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

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. The company had revenue of $34.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.97 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 4.25%. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.40 EPS. Research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 12.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 1st were paid a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on VLO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Valero Energy from $178.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $171.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.