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

Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation, ten have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $152.67.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Tudor Pickering upgraded 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 for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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.

Valero Energy Stock Down 1.4 %

Valero Energy stock opened at $131.43 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $133.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $133.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market cap of $41.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. Valero Energy has a 52 week low of $116.84 and a 52 week high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valero Energy will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Valero Energy by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,257,024,000 after buying an additional 4,805,133 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,701,232 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,311,864,000 after acquiring an additional 413,963 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,938,335 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $973,119,000 after purchasing an additional 429,252 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Valero Energy by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,871,229 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $844,775,000 after purchasing an additional 100,248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $669,400,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Company 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.