Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Position Boosted by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 29.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 198,323 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 44,826 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Valero Energy were worth $24,312,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,784 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,169,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,947 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $606,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Silver Coast Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Silver Coast Investments LLC now owns 5,070 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 4,687 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $575,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,514 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. 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 report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $149.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Valero Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $156.08.

Valero Energy Price Performance

NYSE VLO opened at $131.42 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $133.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $133.48. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $41.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.36. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $116.84 and a 52-week high of $184.79.

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

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. This is a positive change from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.07. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.