Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at TD Cowen

TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $40.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Valvoline from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Valvoline from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $38.00 target price (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Valvoline in a report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $42.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Valvoline from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.67.

Valvoline Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of VVV opened at $34.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.70. Valvoline has a one year low of $32.99 and a one year high of $48.27. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $36.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.37. The company has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.54 and a beta of 1.32.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.01. Valvoline had a return on equity of 143.64% and a net margin of 16.34%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Valvoline will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valvoline news, insider Julie Marie O’daniel sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total value of $224,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,305 shares in the company, valued at approximately $572,560.05. This represents a 28.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valvoline

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VVV. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Valvoline by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 74,286 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,109,000 after acquiring an additional 5,030 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Valvoline in the third quarter worth $97,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 70,666.7% during the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 10,615 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 10,600 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Valvoline by 260.8% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 65,208 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,729,000 after purchasing an additional 47,134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Valvoline by 4.6% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 34,685 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,450,000 after purchasing an additional 1,537 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

About Valvoline

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.