Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Sold by Manning & Napier Advisors LLC

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 5.4% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 32,497 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,863 shares during the quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $8,133,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,177,191 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,959,065,000 after acquiring an additional 163,975 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,950,982 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,945,500,000 after acquiring an additional 63,919 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,111,542,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,668,210 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $922,728,000 after purchasing an additional 394,693 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,285,161 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $534,791,000 after purchasing an additional 17,336 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Valero Energy from $220.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Valero Energy from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Valero Energy from $276.00 to $292.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Wolfe Research reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $203.00 price target on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Valero Energy from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $247.59.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total transaction of $2,011,275.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,742 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Valero Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Valero’s Gulf Coast refining network is benefiting from strong fuel demand, elevated crack spreads, and rising exports, which should support refining profitability. Strong Fuel Demand & Elevated Crack Spreads Support Valero’s Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Valero’s recent Russell reclassification into larger-cap and growth benchmarks may be drawing incremental index demand for the stock, while lower crude costs can help preserve refining margins. Why Valero (VLO) Is Up 5.0% After Russell Reclassification And Refining Margin Tailwinds
• Positive Sentiment: Renewed Middle East tensions and rising oil prices are keeping refining margins in focus, which can be supportive for Valero if crude costs remain softer than product prices. Can Valero Energy Benefit From Renewed Middle East Tensions?
• Neutral Sentiment: Valero is also being highlighted as a trending stock, which signals elevated investor attention but does not by itself change fundamentals. Valero Energy Corporation (VLO) Is a Trending Stock: Facts to Know Before Betting on It

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE:VLO traded down $0.71 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $280.54. 1,931,882 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,034,427. Valero Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $130.78 and a 52-week high of $287.05. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $253.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company has a market cap of $83.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 0.55.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $1.06. The business had revenue of $32.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 28.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were issued a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.88%.

About Valero Energy

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.