American Century Companies Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

American Century Companies Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 52.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 73,706 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 80,856 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $9,036,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $14,751,000 after buying an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,897,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $274,000. Finally, Patten Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $277,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $133.77 on Thursday. Valero Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $116.84 and a 1-year high of $184.79. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $133.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $133.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. Equities research analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were issued a $1.13 dividend. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is currently 53.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $152.67.

Valero Energy 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.