Cynosure Group LLC Raises Stock Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Cynosure Group LLC grew its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,741 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the quarter. Cynosure Group LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $370,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter worth $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $138.56 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $136.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $145.47. The firm has a market cap of $43.87 billion, a PE ratio of 12.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.39. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $184.79. 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 (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) 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 period last year, the firm posted $7.49 EPS. Valero Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VLO shares. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Citigroup dropped their price objective 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. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.86.

About Valero Energy

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.