Potentia Wealth Invests $361,000 in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Potentia Wealth purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 2,945 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $361,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,257,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,805,133 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,701,232 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,311,864,000 after buying an additional 413,963 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,687,585 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $639,268,000 after buying an additional 247,630 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,072,188 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $499,210,000 after acquiring an additional 487,022 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Valero Energy by 4,908.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,850,526 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $384,907,000 after acquiring an additional 2,793,607 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on VLO shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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 cut their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $156.08.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $132.00 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $116.84 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $133.93 and a 200 day moving average of $133.36. The firm has a market cap of $41.58 billion, a PE ratio of 15.57, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. On average, research analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal 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 $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.