Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $154.57.

VLO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $169.00 to $123.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th.

Valero Energy Stock Up 5.0 %

NYSE VLO opened at $133.49 on Tuesday. Valero Energy has a twelve month low of $116.84 and a twelve month high of $184.79. The stock has a market cap of $42.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $131.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $7.49 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Valero Energy will post 8.86 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were paid a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valero Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Valero Energy by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,293,589 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $174,673,000 after purchasing an additional 22,571 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 7.5% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $12,121,000 after buying an additional 6,278 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 136.1% in the third quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 75,117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,143,000 after acquiring an additional 43,299 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,956,743 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,090,532,000 after acquiring an additional 192,397 shares during the period. Finally, Foster & Motley Inc. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 23.3% during the 3rd quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 20,802 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,809,000 after acquiring an additional 3,934 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.