Great Lakes Retirement Inc. Purchases 252 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Great Lakes Retirement Inc. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,950 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 252 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,164,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $534,892,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 121.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,739,618 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $242,853,000 after buying an additional 952,518 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 338.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 905,403 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $106,204,000 after acquiring an additional 699,109 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its position in Valero Energy by 94.4% in the third quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,429,706 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $202,585,000 after acquiring an additional 694,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the second quarter worth approximately $75,019,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VLO shares. Citigroup initiated coverage on Valero Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Bank of America upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $156.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, March 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $130.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $167.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on Valero Energy from $154.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $165.69.

Valero Energy Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of VLO stock traded up $3.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $170.88. The stock had a trading volume of 1,837,968 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,451,912. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Valero Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $104.18 and a 12-month high of $172.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $144.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.53.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.95 by $0.60. The business had revenue of $35.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.76 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 6.10% and a return on equity of 31.62%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $8.45 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 15.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 1st were paid a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 17.31%.

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.