Cornerstone Advisors LLC Buys 2,700 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Cornerstone Advisors LLC increased its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 55.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,600 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,700 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,026,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on VLO shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $169.00 to $123.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.86.

Valero Energy Stock Up 0.1 %

Valero Energy stock opened at $141.41 on Friday. 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 market cap of $44.77 billion, a PE ratio of 12.68, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $136.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $146.09.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The company had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.49 EPS. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 38.39%.

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.