Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Takes Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,624 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VLO. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $669,400,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 16.1% in 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 acquiring an additional 4,805,133 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Valero Energy by 15,395.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,355,699 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $179,047,000 after buying an additional 1,346,950 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $132,469,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $98,376,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE VLO opened at $134.04 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 one year low of $99.00 and a one year high of $167.78. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $122.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $127.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.81, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.99.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.27). Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The firm had revenue of $28.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.54 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.82 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 159.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays increased their target price on Valero Energy from $140.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $121.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $144.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Raymond James reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $151.93.

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.