Norden Group LLC Invests $285,000 in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 7,579 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $285,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Park Place Capital Corp acquired a new position in shares of Valvoline in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in Valvoline in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Valvoline by 127.1% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,465 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Valvoline in the fourth quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new position in Valvoline during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $60,000. 96.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valvoline Price Performance

Shares of VVV opened at $42.50 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $43.08 and a 200-day moving average of $37.98. The company has a quick ratio of 2.14, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 1.45. Valvoline Inc. has a twelve month low of $29.15 and a twelve month high of $45.37.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29. Valvoline had a net margin of 92.04% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The business had revenue of $373.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $380.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Valvoline from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Mizuho assumed coverage on Valvoline in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Valvoline from $36.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Valvoline from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $37.00 to $44.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.75.

About Valvoline

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.