AlphaStar Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

AlphaStar Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,881 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 393 shares during the period. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VLO. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Valero Energy by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 224,782 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,556,000 after purchasing an additional 2,511 shares in the last quarter. Westbourne Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 14.6% during the 4th quarter. Westbourne Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 55,045 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,748,000 after buying an additional 7,014 shares during the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,134 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $875,000 after buying an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in Valero Energy by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC now owns 28,666 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,514,000 after acquiring an additional 672 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on VLO. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho dropped their price target on Valero Energy from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup cut their price target on Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Tudor Pickering raised Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $154.46.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO stock opened at $133.05 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $130.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $137.13. Valero Energy Co. has a one year low of $116.84 and a one year high of $184.79. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 2.13%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 7.86 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 30th. This is an increase from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 53.30%.

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.