Norges Bank Acquires Shares of 5,460,480 Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 5,460,480 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $669,400,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.72% of Valero Energy as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,878 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 31.6% in the fourth quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 20,714 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,539,000 after purchasing an additional 4,978 shares during the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its position in Valero Energy by 26.4% during the fourth quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 26,987 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,308,000 after purchasing an additional 5,637 shares during the last quarter. Sava Infond d.o.o. purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $184,000. Finally, Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 34,430 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,221,000 after acquiring an additional 5,568 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE VLO opened at $133.14 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $116.84 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The stock has a market cap of $41.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $133.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $133.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. On average, analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on VLO shares. Mizuho reduced 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, 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 report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $152.67.

Valero Energy Company 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.