Hancock Whitney Corp Sells 937 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Hancock Whitney Corp trimmed its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 9.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,670 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 937 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $1,480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Collective Family Office LLC raised its stake in Valero Energy by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Collective Family Office LLC now owns 4,040 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $690,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Valero Energy by 4.7% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,327 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Covenant Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Covenant Asset Management LLC now owns 14,659 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,502,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Drive Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,797 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $990,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Rovin Capital UT ADV grew its position in Valero Energy by 3.5% during the first quarter. Rovin Capital UT ADV now owns 1,968 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VLO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho raised shares of Valero Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $178.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kimberly S. Greene sold 720 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 13,314 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,105,209.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO traded down $5.69 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $150.76. 828,106 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,053,756. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.48. The company has a market cap of $49.30 billion, a PE ratio of 7.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.42. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $119.88 and a 52-week high of $184.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $153.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.88.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.11. Valero Energy had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 21.01%. The company had revenue of $34.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.40 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.20%.

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.