Essex Financial Services Inc. Purchases 544 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 21.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,033 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 544 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $394,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Valero Energy from $130.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Valero Energy from $171.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. UBS Group raised their price target on Valero Energy from $167.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Valero Energy from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.40.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $156.84 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $104.18 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $162.85 and a 200-day moving average of $141.50. The company has a market capitalization of $52.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.55.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.64. The company had revenue of $31.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.02 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 24.82% and a net margin of 5.01%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $8.27 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 18.11 EPS for the current year.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.