14,367 Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Shares Acquired by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 71.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 34,419 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 14,367 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $13,341,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,033,310 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,243,630,000 after purchasing an additional 516,975 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 9.4% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,969,320 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $733,660,000 after purchasing an additional 254,604 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 18.4% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,842,339 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $702,285,000 after buying an additional 442,177 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 45.3% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 2,584,976 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $638,695,000 after buying an additional 806,018 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 33.9% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,058,341 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $536,074,000 after buying an additional 520,642 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy News Summary

Here’s some of the latest news about VLO:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Valero for above-average financial growth and included VLO among its Rank #1 (Strong Buy) growth stocks, potentially reinforcing the bullish case for earnings prospects. Article: 3 Reasons Why Growth Investors Shouldn’t Overlook Valero Energy Article: Best Growth Stocks to Buy for November 11th
• Positive Sentiment: The board affirmed Valero’s regular $1.20-per-share quarterly dividend, payable December 21 to shareholders of record November 24. The article also points to discounted heavy crude, favorable freight rates, and renewable-fuels operations as potential business supports. Article: How Investors May Respond to Valero Energy Dividend Affirmation
• Negative Sentiment: Jim Cramer advised investors to sell, arguing that Valero’s refining-cycle rally may be over and that margins could normalize further. This is a caution about the cycle and profit-taking, rather than a reported change in Valero’s operations. Article: Cramer Recommends Selling Valero Energy Stock

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $364.23 on Thursday. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $159.90 and a 1 year high of $461.52. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $399.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $292.16. The company has a market capitalization of $101.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.19, a PEG ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.72.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The oil and gas company reported $23.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.17 by $2.73. The company had revenue of $46.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.71 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 45.90% and a net margin of 8.44%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 43.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.66 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 58.33 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be paid a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 24th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on VLO shares. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $434.00 to $436.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $467.00 price objective (up from $355.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Freedom Broker cut Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $276.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $406.32.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is an international refiner and producer of transportation fuels and other petroleum products, headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. Its refining business processes crude oil and other feedstocks into products such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and petrochemical feedstocks. The company markets and distributes fuels to wholesale customers and through branded distribution networks. Its refining operations span the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, with products serving customers in North America and other markets.