Stanley Laman Group Ltd. Sells 658 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Stanley Laman Group Ltd. decreased its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 2.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,229 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 658 shares during the quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $3,338,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Quad Cities Investment Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Quad Cities Investment Group LLC now owns 4,851 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $655,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,784 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,169,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $231,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,947 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $606,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $248,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Down 4.3 %

VLO stock opened at $130.95 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company’s 50 day moving average is $130.58 and its 200 day moving average is $136.75. The stock has a market cap of $41.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.42. Valero Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $116.84 and a 1-year high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. Sell-side analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VLO. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $154.46.

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.