Two Sigma Advisers LP Grows Stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 501.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 582,500 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 485,600 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $78,655,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Valero Energy by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,293,589 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $174,673,000 after acquiring an additional 22,571 shares during the period. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $535,000. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $12,121,000 after purchasing an additional 6,278 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,956,743 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,090,532,000 after buying an additional 192,397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 136.1% in the 3rd quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 75,117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $10,143,000 after buying an additional 43,299 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on VLO shares. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $172.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.86.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

NYSE VLO opened at $131.50 on Friday. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $120.21 and a 52-week high of $184.79. The company has a fifty day moving average of $137.07 and a 200-day moving average of $144.70. The company has a market capitalization of $41.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The company’s revenue was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is currently 38.39%.

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.