International Assets Investment Management LLC Trims Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

International Assets Investment Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 98.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 12,501 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,063,848 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,540,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at about $34,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 196.8% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 276 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on VLO shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $173.00 to $141.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $154.57.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Valero Energy stock opened at $125.21 on Thursday. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $116.84 and a 12-month high of $184.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $131.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $139.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.64 billion, a PE ratio of 11.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $7.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.86 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 38.39%.

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.