James Investment Research Inc. Trims stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE: VLO )

James Investment Research Inc. lowered its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO – Ratings ) by 16.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The company has 42,622 shares of the oil and gas company after selling 8,314 shares during the quarter. James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $5,407,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

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Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Blair William & Company IL boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 1.9% in the first quarter. Blair William & Company IL now owns 33,427 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,394,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 21.7% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 100,000 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $10,163,000 after purchasing an additional 17,844 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 12.5% ​​in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 60,730 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,167,000 after purchasing an additional 6,735 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,253,000. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc raised its stake in Valero Energy by 21.0% during the first quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,780 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $688,000 after buying an additional 1,179 shares during the last quarter. Currently, 79.28% of the shares are owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy traded up 1.4%

Valero Energy stock opened at $134.50 on Monday. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $96.71 and a 52-week high of $150.39. The company has a market cap of $49.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The business has a 50-day SMA of $133.73 and a 200-day SMA of $128.80.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO – Get Rating ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 26th. The oil and gas company reported $8.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.45 by $1.00. Valero Energy had a net margin of 6.54% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The company had revenue of $41.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ estimates of $43.31 billion. The business earned $2.47 per share in the same period last year. The firm’s quarterly revenue increased by 16.3 percent compared to the same quarter last year. analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 24.4 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy raises dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 14th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 13th. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 annual dividend and a yield of 3.03%. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is 14.01%.

Analysts set new price targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on VLO. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Valero Energy from $177.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 28th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $153.69, based on data from MarketBeat.

Valero Energy Profile

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Valero Energy Corp. It is involved in the manufacture and marketing of transportation fuels and other petrochemical products. It operates through the following business segments: Refining, Ethanol and Renewable Diesel. The Refining segment includes refining operations, associated marketing activities, and logistics assets that support its refining operations.

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