Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Price Target Raised to $237.00 at The Goldman Sachs Group

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its target price hoisted by stock analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $203.00 to $237.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target suggests a potential downside of 1.17% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Zacks Research lowered Valero Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $190.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $193.20.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Valero Energy stock traded up $8.76 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $239.81. 3,162,676 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,611,625. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business has a fifty day moving average of $195.07 and a 200 day moving average of $176.62. Valero Energy has a 1-year low of $99.00 and a 1-year high of $239.55. The company has a market capitalization of $71.71 billion, a PE ratio of 31.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.70.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.55. Valero Energy had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 12.35%. The company had revenue of $30.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.20 billion. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valero Energy

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 17.4% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 160,794 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,377,000 after purchasing an additional 23,859 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 15.7% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 161,957 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $21,770,000 after purchasing an additional 21,997 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,534,000. Tema Etfs LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,669,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 9.0% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 104,859 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $17,853,000 after purchasing an additional 8,638 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Company Profile

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.