Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $255.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $184.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $220.00 to $292.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.59.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $244.44 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Valero Energy has a 1-year low of $130.78 and a 1-year high of $265.61. The stock has a market cap of $72.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $245.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $216.02.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The business had revenue of $32.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valero Energy will post 27.45 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Valero Energy

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.90, for a total value of $1,776,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 27,242 shares in the company, valued at $6,453,629.80. This trade represents a 21.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,143,672 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $705,502,000 after acquiring an additional 209,597 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth $954,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 359.0% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 14,243 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,319,000 after purchasing an additional 11,140 shares during the period. Finally, Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the third quarter worth $3,249,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.