Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $155.86.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on VLO. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Piper Sandler cut Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $169.00 to $123.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $139.08 on Monday. Valero Energy has a fifty-two week low of $120.21 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The business’s fifty day moving average is $136.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market cap of $44.03 billion, a PE ratio of 12.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.39.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The firm had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.49 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Valero Energy will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 38.39%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 3.4% in the second quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,970 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $309,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,543 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $712,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,366 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $214,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.4% during the second quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 5,068 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $794,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnus Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 4.3% in the second quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 1,752 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

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.