Hsbc Holdings PLC Purchases 20,234 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 743,997 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 20,234 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $194,174,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 3,400.0% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 105 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Valero Energy by 134.0% during the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter worth $33,000. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE VLO opened at $370.94 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.39, a PEG ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.57. Valero Energy Corporation has a one year low of $153.20 and a one year high of $375.11. The business’s fifty day moving average is $315.25 and its 200-day moving average is $265.31.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.11 by $2.43. Valero Energy had a net margin of 5.17% and a return on equity of 26.74%. The firm had revenue of $44.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.28 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 48.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 41.15 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 19.92%.

Insider Activity at Valero Energy

In related news, SVP Eric Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total value of $2,011,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $259.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $289.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on Valero Energy from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $280.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $296.18.

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.