Paloma Partners Management Co Acquires 8,804 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Paloma Partners Management Co increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 68.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,735 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,804 shares during the quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,935,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $15,945,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.8% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,293,589 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $174,673,000 after purchasing an additional 22,571 shares during the last quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $535,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Valero Energy by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,956,743 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,090,532,000 after buying an additional 192,397 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Valero Energy by 130.9% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,136 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $194,000 after buying an additional 644 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.86.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

VLO stock opened at $139.08 on Monday. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $120.21 and a twelve month high of $184.79. The firm has a market cap of $44.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.47, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.40. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $136.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $145.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.49 EPS. Analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a $1.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.08%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.39%.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.