Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Raises Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 18.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,194 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 488 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the second quarter worth $29,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on VLO shares. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America started coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Valero Energy from $173.00 to $141.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.86.

Valero Energy Price Performance

VLO opened at $140.91 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $136.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $145.89. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $184.79. The firm has a market cap of $44.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.64, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.49 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.39%.

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.