Heartland Advisors Inc. Sells 26,721 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Heartland Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 38.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,712 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 26,721 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $5,236,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Tobam purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 196.8% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 276 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $152.67.

Valero Energy Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $131.43 on Friday. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $116.84 and a 1 year 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 stock has a market cap of $41.40 billion, a PE ratio of 15.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $133.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $133.33.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

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

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.