Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Acquires New Stake in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 6,096 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $229,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Valvoline during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,299,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Valvoline by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,040,237 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $130,257,000 after purchasing an additional 911,073 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 927.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 996,050 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,803,000 after buying an additional 899,099 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Valvoline by 260.3% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,225,486 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,510,000 after buying an additional 885,342 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Valvoline during the 4th quarter worth $31,165,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Valvoline from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $36.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Valvoline from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $37.00 to $44.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.75.

Valvoline Stock Performance

Shares of VVV stock opened at $41.19 on Friday. Valvoline Inc. has a 12-month low of $29.15 and a 12-month high of $45.37. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $37.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.02. The company has a market cap of $5.34 billion, a PE ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 1.44.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.29. Valvoline had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 92.04%. The firm had revenue of $373.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $380.10 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.16 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Valvoline

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.