Redwood Investment Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Redwood Investment Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 38.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,227 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,636 shares during the period. Redwood Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,044,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,177,191 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,959,065,000 after buying an additional 163,975 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in 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 worth $1,945,500,000 after purchasing an additional 63,919 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth $1,111,542,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 394,693 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Valero Energy by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,033,310 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,243,630,000 after acquiring an additional 516,975 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VLO. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $329.00 target price on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $203.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Monday. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $279.00 to $323.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $287.35.

Valero Energy Stock Down 1.7%

NYSE:VLO opened at $307.53 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $91.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $271.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $239.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.64. Valero Energy Corporation has a one year low of $130.78 and a one year high of $320.24.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.11 by $2.43. The business had revenue of $44.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.47 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 26.74% and a net margin of 5.17%.The business’s revenue was up 48.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.28 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 36.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 19.92%.

Valero Energy News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen raised its price target for Valero Energy from $338 to $350, implying further upside, although it maintained a “hold” rating. Benzinga analyst update
• Positive Sentiment: Another analyst update raised Valero’s price target to $356, adding to the constructive view of the refiner’s earnings and cash-flow outlook. Valero Energy price target raised
• Positive Sentiment: Valero was highlighted among large-cap companies involved in more than $10 billion of combined buybacks. Repurchases can support earnings per share and signal management confidence following strong operating performance. Large-cap buybacks article
• Positive Sentiment: Valero also appeared on screens of highly ranked stocks expected to beat upcoming earnings estimates, reflecting optimism about refining demand and margins. Zacks potential earnings beats
• Neutral Sentiment: Piper Sandler reiterated its “buy” rating, while a separate valuation analysis described Valero’s cash flow as attractive but its earnings multiple as relatively rich. Piper Sandler rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Higher oil prices linked to geopolitical tensions may support refining-sector sentiment, but the broader ETF commentary is not specific to Valero’s operations. July iShares ETF performance

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.