Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Bought by Community Trust & Investment Co.

Community Trust & Investment Co. increased its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,919 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 1,514 shares during the quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,687,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,226,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 7.5% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $12,121,000 after buying an additional 6,278 shares in the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC grew its position 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 worth $10,143,000 after buying an additional 43,299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 2.8% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,956,743 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,090,532,000 after buying an additional 192,397 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $134.18 on Wednesday. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $116.84 and a one year high of $184.79. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $131.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.59. 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 company has a market capitalization of $42.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.42.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $32.88 billion for 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 firm’s revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $7.49 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on VLO shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $173.00 to $141.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $154.57.

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.