Horizon Advisory Services Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Horizon Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,116 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 149 shares during the quarter. Horizon Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $259,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 4,908.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,850,526 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $384,907,000 after purchasing an additional 2,793,607 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 900.2% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 631,095 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $85,217,000 after purchasing an additional 568,000 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,585,166 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $484,105,000 after purchasing an additional 567,059 shares during the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $70,352,000. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 501.1% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 582,500 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $78,655,000 after purchasing an additional 485,600 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Tudor Pickering upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One equities 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $154.46.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.3 %

VLO stock opened at $135.10 on Tuesday. Valero Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $116.84 and a 1-year high of $184.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $42.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $131.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $135.57.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 53.30%.

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.