First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. Has $1.88 Million Position in Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. cut its stake in shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 27.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,589 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,803 shares during the quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,875,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in Valero Energy by 138.4% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 216,034 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $53,378,000 after buying an additional 125,428 shares in the last quarter. Marin Bay Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 28.5% during the first quarter. Marin Bay Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,453 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $853,000 after buying an additional 766 shares in the last quarter. Himension Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the first quarter worth $99,000. ABN Amro Investment Solutions lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 17,220 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,255,000 after acquiring an additional 1,108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 151,912 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $37,534,000 after acquiring an additional 1,039 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VLO. Wall Street Zen raised Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $292.00 to $338.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $261.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.82.

Valero Energy Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE VLO opened at $310.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.32 billion, a PE ratio of 22.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 0.55. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $262.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $130.78 and a 12 month high of $320.24.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. The company had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 32.61 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.88%.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total value of $2,011,275.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs raised Valero Energy’s price target to $357 from $286 and kept a buy rating, signaling meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen also lifted its price target on Valero to $338 from $292, reinforcing improving Street sentiment on the stock. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: A recent comparison of Valero vs. Cenovus Energy argued that VLO’s refining advantage and near-term upside make it the more attractive energy stock right now. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Another article echoed the same Valero vs. Cenovus comparison, but it was more of an opinion/research piece than a new operational update for VLO. Zacks article
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks also published a long-term growth article naming Valero as a top growth stock, which is supportive but not a direct catalyst. Zacks article

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.