Diversified Trust Co Sells 2,226 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Diversified Trust Co lowered its stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 11.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 16,971 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,226 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $4,193,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. AXS Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 157.0% in the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 203 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 32.9% during the 4th quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 206 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on VLO shares. Citigroup increased their price target on Valero Energy from $246.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $222.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $232.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $245.59.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valero Energy

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.90, for a total transaction of $1,776,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 27,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,453,629.80. This trade represents a 21.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.1%

VLO opened at $236.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.58. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $245.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $214.85. Valero Energy Corporation has a one year low of $130.78 and a one year high of $265.61. The stock has a market cap of $70.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 0.55.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The firm had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.89 EPS. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Corporation will post 27.45 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

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

About Valero Energy

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.