Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Makes New $145,000 Investment in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 1,214 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $145,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in 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 worth $384,907,000 after purchasing an additional 2,793,607 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 900.2% during the third 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 period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 18.8% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,585,166 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $484,105,000 after purchasing an additional 567,059 shares in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at $70,352,000. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on VLO. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given 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, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $154.46.

Valero Energy Trading Down 1.1 %

Valero Energy stock opened at $133.62 on Wednesday. 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 Co. has a 1 year low of $116.84 and a 1 year high of $184.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $131.44 and its 200-day moving average is $135.45. The company has a market cap of $42.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.76, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share 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%. On average, equities analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. 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 (DPR) is presently 53.30%.

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.