Invst LLC Invests $647,000 in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Invst LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 15,368 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $647,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Valvoline by 25.1% during the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 8,507,925 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $379,198,000 after purchasing an additional 1,706,190 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Valvoline by 19,218.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,735,549 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $140,382,000 after purchasing an additional 3,716,212 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Valvoline by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 3,499,430 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $155,970,000 after purchasing an additional 212,428 shares during the period. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI boosted its stake in shares of Valvoline by 55.0% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 3,055,520 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $114,826,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083,722 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Valvoline by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,720,748 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $117,534,000 after purchasing an additional 94,673 shares during the period. 96.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valvoline Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VVV opened at $41.85 on Tuesday. Valvoline Inc. has a 12-month low of $29.15 and a 12-month high of $48.26. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.39 billion, a PE ratio of 33.21 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.57.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The basic materials company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.03). Valvoline had a net margin of 10.45% and a return on equity of 182.88%. The company had revenue of $421.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. Valvoline’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valvoline declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, July 30th that allows the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the basic materials company to purchase up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on VVV. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Valvoline from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $54.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Baird R W raised shares of Valvoline to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Valvoline in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $49.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Valvoline in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.57.

About Valvoline

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.