Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 756,411 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 17,892 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $102,138,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VLO. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter worth $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter worth $29,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $139.55 on Thursday. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $120.21 and a 52-week high of $184.79. 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 company’s 50-day simple moving average is $135.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.80. The firm has a market cap of $44.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 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 net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $7.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 9.1 earnings per share 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 paid 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 3.07%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. One 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.86.

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.