2,055 Shares in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Bought by Strategic Family Wealth Counselors L.L.C.

Strategic Family Wealth Counselors L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,055 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $335,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc lifted its position in Valero Energy by 194.4% in the fourth quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 212 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $244.55 on Friday. Valero Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $125.10 and a 1 year high of $258.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $238.49 and a 200 day moving average of $201.34. The stock has a market cap of $72.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 0.58.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. Valero Energy had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The business had revenue of $32.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 28.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $184.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $182.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $203.00 target price on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $237.94.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 8,311 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.69, for a total value of $1,892,331.59. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 42,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,618,080.98. The trade was a 16.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy 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.