Acadian Asset Management LLC Purchases 426,093 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 37.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,558,750 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 426,093 shares during the quarter. Valero Energy comprises about 0.9% of Acadian Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Acadian Asset Management LLC owned about 0.48% of Valero Energy worth $266,040,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. First Foundation Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the first quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, FSC Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho raised Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $165.00 to $175.00 in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $167.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.47.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Valero Energy stock traded up $0.55 on Friday, reaching $148.33. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,582,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,910,159. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $119.09 and a twelve month high of $184.79. The company has a market cap of $48.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.35, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.42. 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 fifty day moving average price is $154.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $152.40.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.64. Valero Energy had a net margin of 5.01% and a return on equity of 24.82%. The firm had revenue of $31.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.27 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Valero Energy Co. will post 13.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 1st will be given a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.20%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total value of $113,846.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 13,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,105,209.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.