Brokerages Set Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Price Target at $151.93

Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) have been assigned an average rating of “Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, thirteen have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $151.93.

Several research firms recently issued reports on VLO. Barclays upped their target price on Valero Energy from $140.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Raymond James cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Valero Energy from $121.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $152.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 103,364 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $13,644,000 after purchasing an additional 2,609 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.5% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 21,346 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,819,000 after purchasing an additional 519 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 14.8% in the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 54,279 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,169,000 after purchasing an additional 6,998 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 13.1% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 58,277 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,697,000 after buying an additional 6,737 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 37.0% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 46,854 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,188,000 after buying an additional 12,655 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $127.79 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $121.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.07, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Valero Energy has a 52 week low of $99.00 and a 52 week high of $167.78.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.27). Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The company had revenue of $28.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.82 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.54%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 159.72%.

Valero Energy Company Profile

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.