Donaldson Capital Management LLC Sells 4,054 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Donaldson Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 16.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,576 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,054 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,522,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $14,751,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,897,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $274,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Valero Energy by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $12,121,000 after buying an additional 6,278 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:VLO opened at $126.78 on Tuesday. Valero Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $116.84 and a 52 week high of $184.79. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $132.91 and a 200 day moving average of $134.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.95, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on VLO. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $156.08.

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.