Valero Energy Corporation $VLO Position Increased by Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd boosted its holdings in Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) by 25.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 48,883 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 9,839 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $8,323,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Valero Energy by 17.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 15.7% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 161,957 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $21,770,000 after buying an additional 21,997 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the third quarter worth about $4,534,000. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 9.0% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 104,859 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $17,853,000 after acquiring an additional 8,638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tema Etfs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,669,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:VLO opened at $240.26 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $203.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $180.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Valero Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $99.00 and a 12-month high of $247.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.70.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.55. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 12.35% and a net margin of 1.91%.The business had revenue of $30.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.20 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.64 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on VLO. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Wall Street Zen raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on Valero Energy from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the company 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 assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $193.20.

Insider Activity at Valero Energy

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.60, for a total value of $95,440.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

About Valero Energy

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.