Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Acquired by Connecticut Wealth Management LLC

Connecticut Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 47.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,819 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,551 shares during the quarter. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $626,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marino Stram & Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC now owns 8,384 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,090,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 10,000 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 1,690 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Fulcrum Equity Management lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Fulcrum Equity Management now owns 8,806 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,145,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its stake in Valero Energy by 40.3% in the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 303 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on VLO shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Valero Energy from $167.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $154.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $130.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.40.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO traded down $0.50 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $156.84. 2,356,803 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,689,989. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.59. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $163.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $141.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.55. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $104.18 and a 12 month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.64. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 24.82% and a net margin of 5.01%. The firm had revenue of $31.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.27 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 18.02 earnings per share for the current year.

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.