Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Decreases Stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lowered its position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 435,818 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 3,131 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $53,427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Tobam purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 196.8% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 276 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Mizuho reduced 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $156.08.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $135.00 on Friday. 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 $42.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.92, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $133.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $133.59. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $116.84 and a 12 month high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 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 forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.35%. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.30%.

About Valero Energy

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.