Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC Purchases 1,504 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC raised its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 3.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 51,625 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,504 shares during the period. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $6,971,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at about $219,000. Kennedy Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at about $206,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 2.2% in the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 11,464 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,957,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 59.0% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 58,632 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $9,965,000 after purchasing an additional 21,759 shares during the period. Finally, Castleark Management LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 1,936.1% during the first quarter. Castleark Management LLC now owns 129,700 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $22,138,000 after purchasing an additional 123,330 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on VLO shares. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.86.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO stock opened at $139.83 on Tuesday. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $120.21 and a 52-week high of $184.79. The stock has a market cap of $44.27 billion, a PE ratio of 12.54, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $136.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $145.68.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The firm 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 revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $7.49 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 38.39%.

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.