Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Price Target to $156.00

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its price objective decreased by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $179.00 to $156.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 6.43% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Valero Energy from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Bank of America upgraded Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $156.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, March 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Valero Energy from $130.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.53.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $146.57. 452,060 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,083,164. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $151.52. Valero Energy has a 1-year low of $112.67 and a 1-year high of $184.79. The firm has a market cap of $47.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.64. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 24.82% and a net margin of 5.01%. The firm had revenue of $31.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.02 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $8.27 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Valero Energy will post 15.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Valero Energy news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total value of $113,846.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,105,209.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Valero Energy

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $570,428,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 12,883.3% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,047,360 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $136,157,000 after buying an additional 1,039,293 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 37.6% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,558,750 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $266,040,000 after buying an additional 426,093 shares during the period. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 2,389,654 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $310,655,000 after buying an additional 376,449 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,788,994 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $362,569,000 after buying an additional 342,218 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.