Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation, ten have given a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $154.46.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Tudor Pickering raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th.

Valero Energy Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $127.69 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $40.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.06, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy has a 52-week low of $116.84 and a 52-week high of $184.79. The business’s 50 day moving average is $132.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $134.75.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 predict that Valero Energy will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.54%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 53.30%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valero Energy

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $14,751,000 after buying an additional 455 shares during the period. Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,897,000 after buying an additional 1,937 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $274,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $12,121,000 after buying an additional 6,278 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

About Valero Energy

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.