Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 132,969 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,939 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $16,301,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $669,400,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,725,700 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,257,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,805,133 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 4,908.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,850,526 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $384,907,000 after buying an additional 2,793,607 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $132,469,000. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 159.3% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 850,161 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $104,221,000 after buying an additional 522,233 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE VLO opened at $131.43 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.40 billion, a PE ratio of 15.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $116.84 and a one year high of $184.79. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $133.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $133.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on VLO shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Tudor Pickering raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $152.67.

Valero Energy 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.