Oak Thistle LLC Sells 4,523 Shares of Valero Energy Corporation $VLO

Oak Thistle LLC reduced its stake in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 38.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,385 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,523 shares during the quarter. Oak Thistle LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,257,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,724,707 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,576,035,000 after purchasing an additional 286,942 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Valero Energy by 276.9% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,795,436 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,425,754,000 after buying an additional 7,931,018 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 16.7% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,141,511 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,089,897,000 after buying an additional 1,164,217 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Valero Energy during the second quarter valued at $827,390,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Valero Energy by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,024,322 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $675,369,000 after acquiring an additional 148,195 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valero Energy news, CFO Jason W. Fraser sold 9,933 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.02, for a total transaction of $1,728,540.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 134,196 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,352,787.92. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

NYSE VLO opened at $161.83 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $171.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.28. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $99.00 and a 12-month high of $185.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market cap of $49.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.79, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.76.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.51. Valero Energy had a net margin of 1.21% and a return on equity of 8.69%. The firm had revenue of $32.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th were issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 94.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on VLO. Barclays boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $169.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Valero Energy from $181.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Erste Group Bank assumed coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Monday, November 10th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 target price (up previously from $190.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $183.00 target price on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $183.20.

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.