Royce & Associates LP Has $45.67 Million Position in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,262,293 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,111 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $45,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its position in Valvoline by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 9,738,142 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $407,541,000 after purchasing an additional 1,398,310 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Valvoline by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,096,436 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $171,436,000 after purchasing an additional 16,916 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Valvoline by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,226,769 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $93,215,000 after purchasing an additional 54,545 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Valvoline by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,642,754 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $59,435,000 after purchasing an additional 16,912 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Valvoline by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,577,313 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $57,067,000 after acquiring an additional 349,778 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valvoline

In other news, insider Julie Marie O’daniel sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total value of $224,460.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $572,560.05. This represents a 28.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on VVV. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $38.00 target price (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Valvoline in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Valvoline from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Valvoline from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Valvoline from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.40.

Valvoline Price Performance

NYSE VVV opened at $35.46 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $4.51 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96 and a beta of 1.48. Valvoline Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.90 and a 52 week high of $48.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.39. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $36.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.95.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.01. Valvoline had a net margin of 16.34% and a return on equity of 143.64%. Research analysts predict that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Valvoline Company Profile

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.