Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Purchased by BankPlus Trust Department

BankPlus Trust Department increased its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 11.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,712 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,634 shares during the quarter. BankPlus Trust Department’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,112,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 156.6% in the 1st quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 213 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on VLO shares. Mizuho upped their target price on Valero Energy from $166.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. TD Cowen cut shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $118.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $151.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $135.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.07.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO stock opened at $163.13 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $151.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $137.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.68 billion, a PE ratio of 67.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.05. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $99.00 and a 1 year high of $178.43.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The oil and gas company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.62. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 5.76% and a net margin of 0.62%.The firm had revenue of $29.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.71 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 188.33%.

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.