Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $381.46 and last traded at $381.5960, with a volume of 315686 shares. The stock had previously closed at $370.72.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $329.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Valero Energy from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Valero Energy from $338.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised Valero Energy from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $259.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $296.18.

Valero Energy Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $109.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.57. The business’s 50-day moving average is $317.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $266.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas company reported $12.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.11 by $2.43. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 26.74% and a net margin of 5.17%.The company had revenue of $44.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 48.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 41.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 19.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Eric Fisher sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total value of $2,011,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,742 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,294,212.14. This trade represents a 27.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 57.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC now owns 104 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.6% in the first quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 6,670 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,648,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 5.8% in the second quarter. M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. now owns 916 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Valero Energy by 5.0% in the second quarter. Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,054 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC raised its stake in Valero Energy by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 975 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.