Oppenheimer & Close LLC Takes $422,000 Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Oppenheimer & Close LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 3,442 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $422,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Tobam acquired a new position in Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 196.8% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 276 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on VLO shares. Mizuho decreased their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target 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 dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $156.08.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

NYSE VLO opened at $131.42 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $133.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $133.43. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $116.84 and a 1 year high of $184.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings results 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, research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a $1.13 dividend. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.