Retirement Systems of Alabama Reduces Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Retirement Systems of Alabama lowered its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 1.2% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 67,207 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 824 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $9,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VLO. Keybank National Association OH raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 11.0% in the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 12,498 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,651,000 after acquiring an additional 1,238 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 9.6% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,536 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $467,000 after buying an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 15.2% in the first quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 7,795 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,029,000 after buying an additional 1,029 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 3.5% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 373,052 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $49,269,000 after buying an additional 12,498 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its position in Valero Energy by 1.1% during the first quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 69,603 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $9,192,000 after purchasing an additional 775 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VLO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Valero Energy from $181.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $177.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Wolfe Research downgraded Valero Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Bank of America upgraded Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $152.00 to $179.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Friday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.27.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of VLO stock opened at $169.66 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $162.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $143.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.71 billion, a PE ratio of 35.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.51. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 8.69% and a net margin of 1.21%.The company had revenue of $32.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.14 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 94.36%.

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.