First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Reduces Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lessened its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 14,864 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 527 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,007,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, First Foundation Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of VLO stock opened at $128.69 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $41.23 billion, a PE ratio of 11.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $137.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $148.99. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $119.88 and a 1 year high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.01%. The business’s revenue was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $7.49 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VLO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $131.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $146.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $156.29.

About Valero Energy

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.