Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE Boosts Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 44.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,335 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,998 shares during the period. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,143,672 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $705,502,000 after purchasing an additional 209,597 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 33.5% during the 4th quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 42,376 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,898,000 after acquiring an additional 10,634 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $954,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 359.0% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 14,243 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,319,000 after acquiring an additional 11,140 shares during the period. Finally, Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $3,249,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $258.27 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $245.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $211.65. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $130.78 and a 1 year high of $265.61. The company has a market capitalization of $76.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. The firm had revenue of $32.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 26.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on VLO shares. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $255.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $184.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 4th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $203.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.65.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company’s operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.