Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Increases Holdings in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 46.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,845 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,139 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,603,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Valero Energy by 5.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,273,517 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $897,869,000 after buying an additional 249,195 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its position in Valero Energy by 5.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,143,672 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $705,502,000 after acquiring an additional 209,597 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 3.3% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 2,381,316 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $331,415,000 after acquiring an additional 77,070 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 13.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,929,599 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $328,534,000 after acquiring an additional 226,167 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,904,181 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $324,206,000 after acquiring an additional 43,237 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of VLO stock opened at $241.57 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.62, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.62. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $212.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $185.69. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $99.00 and a 1 year high of $258.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $30.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.20 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 12.35% and a net margin of 1.91%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 5th were paid a $1.20 dividend. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 62.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.60, for a total value of $95,440.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on VLO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Valero Energy from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Citigroup upped their price target on Valero Energy from $190.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $195.00 price target (down from $198.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Valero Energy from $220.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $192.00 price objective (up from $190.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.33.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company’s operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.