BankPlus Trust Department Purchases Shares of 13,155 Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 13,155 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,613,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in VLO. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in Valero Energy by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 123,356 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $14,751,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,226,000. Hudson Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,897,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new position in Valero Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $274,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in Valero Energy by 7.5% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $12,121,000 after buying an additional 6,278 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on VLO shares. Mizuho reduced their target price on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $154.46.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VLO opened at $134.67 on Monday. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $116.84 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $131.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $135.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.63 billion, a PE ratio of 15.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42.

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

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 30th. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

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.