D.A. Davidson & CO. Sells 4,264 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

D.A. Davidson & CO. decreased its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 72,947 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,264 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $9,850,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kennedy Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter worth approximately $206,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its position in Valero Energy by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 11,464 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,957,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the first quarter worth $753,000. Comerica Bank grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 3.8% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 86,182 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $14,710,000 after purchasing an additional 3,167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 971.1% in the first quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 6,512 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,112,000 after buying an additional 5,904 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Valero Energy stock opened at $139.82 on Wednesday. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $120.21 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.54, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.39. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $136.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $145.56.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.49 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.06%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VLO. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup reduced 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 report on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $173.00 to $141.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.86.

Valero Energy 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.