Covenant Asset Management LLC Sells 822 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Covenant Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,421 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 822 shares during the quarter. Covenant Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,523,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Valero Energy by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,287,269 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,389,090,000 after buying an additional 50,837 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Valero Energy by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,687,585 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $639,268,000 after buying an additional 247,630 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Valero Energy by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,072,188 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $499,210,000 after buying an additional 487,022 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Valero Energy by 4,908.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,850,526 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $384,907,000 after buying an additional 2,793,607 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. lifted its position in Valero Energy by 6.3% in the third quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 2,533,434 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $342,090,000 after purchasing an additional 151,200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on VLO. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $154.46.

Valero Energy Trading Up 3.4 %

NYSE VLO opened at $135.49 on Friday. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $116.84 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The stock has a market cap of $42.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.42. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $130.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

Valero Energy 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.