HighTower Advisors LLC Has $24.24 Million Stock Holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 1.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 179,246 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,338 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $24,238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,293,589 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $174,673,000 after buying an additional 22,571 shares in the last quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $535,000. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,762 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $12,121,000 after purchasing an additional 6,278 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,956,743 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,090,532,000 after purchasing an additional 192,397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 130.9% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,136 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $194,000 after purchasing an additional 644 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $133.05 on Friday. Valero Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $120.21 and a 52 week 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. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.93, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $137.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.70.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.04 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 2.74%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 EPS for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on VLO shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays cut their price objective on Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Valero Energy from $192.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Valero Energy from $173.00 to $141.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.86.

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.