Meridian Wealth Management LLC Has $276,000 Stake in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,615 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in VVV. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 16.8% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 9,738,142 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $407,541,000 after acquiring an additional 1,398,310 shares during the period. Geneva Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Valvoline in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,670,000. Fiera Capital Corp acquired a new stake in Valvoline in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,538,000. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Valvoline by 766.6% in the 4th quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 644,980 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $23,335,000 after buying an additional 570,550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Valvoline in the 4th quarter valued at $17,340,000. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valvoline Stock Performance

Shares of VVV opened at $35.54 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $36.95 and a 200-day moving average of $39.26. Valvoline Inc. has a one year low of $33.90 and a one year high of $48.26. The company has a market cap of $4.52 billion, a PE ratio of 17.00 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.01. Valvoline had a net margin of 16.34% and a return on equity of 143.64%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on VVV. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Valvoline from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $38.00 price target (down from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Valvoline from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CTO Robert Travis Dobbins sold 1,914 shares of Valvoline stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $76,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 14,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $598,240. The trade was a 11.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Julie Marie O’daniel sold 6,000 shares of Valvoline stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total transaction of $224,460.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $572,560.05. The trade was a 28.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Valvoline Profile

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.