Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group Boosts Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,034 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. Blair William & Co. IL raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.9% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 33,427 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,394,000 after buying an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 21.7% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 100,006 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,163,000 after buying an additional 17,844 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 12.5% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 60,730 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,167,000 after buying an additional 6,735 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at about $1,253,000. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in shares of Valero Energy by 21.0% in the first quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,780 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $688,000 after buying an additional 1,179 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock traded down $5.73 during trading on Thursday, reaching $161.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,810,558 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,347,291. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $157.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $138.95. The firm has a market cap of $53.71 billion, a PE ratio of 6.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.54. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $104.18 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.95 by $0.60. The company had revenue of $35.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.76 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 6.10% and a return on equity of 31.62%. Valero Energy’s revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $8.45 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 17.25 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VLO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $154.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Bank of America upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $156.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $171.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.63.

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.