Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) Position Cut by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its position in shares of Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) by 29.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 389,186 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 161,710 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $14,081,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Valvoline by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,893,648 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $466,492,000 after purchasing an additional 101,834 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Valvoline by 0.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,096,436 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $171,436,000 after buying an additional 16,916 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Valvoline by 2.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,226,769 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $93,215,000 after buying an additional 54,545 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valvoline by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,642,754 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $59,435,000 after buying an additional 16,912 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its holdings in Valvoline by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,577,313 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $57,067,000 after buying an additional 349,778 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Valvoline

In related news, insider Julie Marie O’daniel sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total value of $224,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,305 shares in the company, valued at $572,560.05. This trade represents a 28.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VVV has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Valvoline from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $38.00 price objective (down from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Friday, April 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.67.

Valvoline Stock Performance

Shares of VVV opened at $34.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $36.02 and its 200-day moving average is $37.99. Valvoline Inc. has a 12-month low of $31.02 and a 12-month high of $48.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.27 and a beta of 1.32.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.01. Valvoline had a net margin of 16.34% and a return on equity of 143.64%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valvoline Profile

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.