Avalon Investment & Advisory Has $22.61 Million Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Avalon Investment & Advisory cut its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 2.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 161,979 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 3,544 shares during the period. Avalon Investment & Advisory’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $22,612,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 6,301 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $799,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Grimes & Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 1,978 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Covenant Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Covenant Asset Management LLC now owns 14,962 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,089,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Roundview Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 18,888 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,396,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Greenfield Savings Bank grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank now owns 9,390 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,311,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. 77.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on VLO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $172.00 to $171.00 in a research note on Friday, July 7th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $135.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 7th. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $160.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $152.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Joseph W. Gorder sold 75,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.99, for a total value of $10,278,124.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 621,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $84,568,373.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock traded up $5.81 on Friday, reaching $142.06. 5,147,053 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,288,909. Valero Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $97.73 and a 52 week high of $150.39. The company has a 50 day moving average of $126.69 and a 200 day moving average of $123.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.17 billion, a PE ratio of 4.89, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The oil and gas company reported $5.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.08 by $0.32. Valero Energy had a net margin of 6.96% and a return on equity of 42.31%. The firm had revenue of $34.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $11.36 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 33.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 24.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 3rd were issued a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 2nd. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.05%.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol. The company produces California Reformulated Gasoline Blendstock for Oxygenate Blending and Conventional Blendstock for Oxygenate Blending gasolines, CARB diesel, diesel, jet fuel, and asphalt; aromatics; and sulfur crude oils.