Bank of New York Mellon Corp Acquires 254,604 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 9.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,969,320 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 254,604 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $733,660,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in 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 period. 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 worth $1,945,500,000 after buying an additional 63,919 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $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 acquiring an additional 394,693 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of 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 valued at $534,791,000 after acquiring an additional 17,336 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VLO. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Valero Energy from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Valero Energy from $236.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.06.

Valero Energy Stock Up 2.7%

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $300.48 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $257.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $228.76. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $130.78 and a 1 year high of $303.64. 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 (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The company had revenue of $32.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.89 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 32.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders 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 currently 34.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total value 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 represents a 27.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Key Valero Energy News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Valero declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $1.20 per share, reinforcing its shareholder-return profile and signaling confidence in cash generation. Valero Energy Corporation Declares Regular Cash Dividend on Common Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst-related coverage suggested Valero could run higher on rising earnings estimates, which typically supports the stock by pointing to improving profit expectations. Can Valero Energy (VLO) Run Higher on Rising Earnings Estimates?
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports said VLO hit a new 52-week high after an analyst upgrade, suggesting Wall Street sentiment has turned more constructive and helped extend the stock’s recent strength. Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Sets New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also unusual options activity, with traders buying more put options than normal, which may indicate hedging or caution, but does not by itself explain a major fundamental shift.
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader refining-margin commentary for the sector was supportive overall, but it was focused on Marathon Petroleum rather than Valero specifically.

Valero Energy 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.