HighTower Advisors LLC Cuts Position in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV – Get Rating) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 45,132 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 729 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $1,467,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ellevest Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 109.6% during the fourth quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 918 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 63.4% during the fourth quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new stake in shares of Valvoline during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 147.1% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 1,250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Valvoline during the third quarter valued at approximately $91,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Valvoline from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 11th. Citigroup cut shares of Valvoline from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $37.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, February 24th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Valvoline from $40.00 to $43.00 in a report on Thursday, May 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Valvoline from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 8th.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Heidi J. Matheys sold 2,546 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.64, for a total transaction of $98,377.44. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 37,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,435,823.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Heidi J. Matheys sold 5,823 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.25, for a total transaction of $205,260.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 37,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,309,854.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Heidi J. Matheys sold 2,546 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.64, for a total transaction of $98,377.44. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 37,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,435,823.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.99% of the company’s stock.

Valvoline Stock Up 0.4 %

VVV opened at $38.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.95, a quick ratio of 3.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Valvoline Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.40 and a 1-year high of $39.67. The company has a market capitalization of $6.33 billion, a PE ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 1.37. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $34.29.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 10th. The basic materials company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.01. Valvoline had a net margin of 79.50% and a return on equity of 50.51%. The business had revenue of $344.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $347.12 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.07 EPS for the current year.

Valvoline Company Profile

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Valvoline, Inc engages in the production, marketing, and supply of engine and automotive maintenance products and services. It operates through the Retail Services segment. The Retail Services segment services the passenger car and light truck quick lube market in the US and Canada with preventive maintenance services done through company operated and independent franchise care stores.