Rhumbline Advisers Sells 11,567 Shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Rhumbline Advisers reduced its position in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 404,965 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 11,567 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.32% of Valvoline worth $14,652,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VVV. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valvoline in the third quarter worth about $41,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Valvoline by 466.7% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 1,275 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 1,050 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valvoline by 83.0% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,332 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 604 shares in the last quarter. Vestor Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valvoline in the third quarter worth about $69,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Valvoline in the third quarter worth about $97,000. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valvoline Trading Down 3.8 %

Shares of NYSE VVV opened at $36.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.70. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $37.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.48. Valvoline Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.90 and a fifty-two week high of $48.26. The company has a market cap of $4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.46 and a beta of 1.45.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.01. Valvoline had a return on equity of 143.64% and a net margin of 16.34%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VVV has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Valvoline from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Valvoline in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $42.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Valvoline from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Valvoline from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $38.00 price objective (down from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Lori Ann Flees acquired 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $39.64 per share, with a total value of $99,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 38,428 shares in the company, valued at $1,523,285.92. This trade represents a 6.96 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles M. Sonsteby acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $39.50 per share, for a total transaction of $395,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 26,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,044,261.50. This represents a 60.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Valvoline Company Profile

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.