Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Golden State Equity Partners

Golden State Equity Partners lessened its holdings in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,084 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Golden State Equity Partners’ holdings in Valero Energy were worth $531,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the third quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $160.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Raymond James lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $154.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Valero Energy from $167.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $173.63.

Valero Energy Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE:VLO traded down $1.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $165.80. The stock had a trading volume of 2,065,193 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,618,982. The business’s 50 day moving average is $161.07 and its 200 day moving average is $140.61. Valero Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $104.18 and a fifty-two week high of $184.79. The stock has a market cap of $55.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.21, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.64. The firm had revenue of $31.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.02 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 24.95% and a net margin of 5.01%. The firm’s revenue was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $8.27 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 18.35 earnings per share for the current year.

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.