Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Mizuho Securities USA LLC lessened its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 17.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,775 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,438 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,805,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Valero Energy by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,585,166 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $484,105,000 after purchasing an additional 567,059 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Capital Group boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 23,171 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,129,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 31.5% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 131,943 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $17,816,000 after buying an additional 31,616 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 55.1% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 7,600 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,026,000 after acquiring an additional 2,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 18.0% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,194 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Down 0.2 %

VLO stock opened at $140.87 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $44.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $136.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $120.21 and a 12 month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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 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 currently 38.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on VLO. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $123.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. Barclays cut their price target on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.86.

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.