Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Reduces Holdings in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV)

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. cut its stake in Valvoline Inc. (NYSE:VVV) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 900,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 35,797 shares during the quarter. Valvoline comprises about 1.3% of Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Valvoline were worth $33,841,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Park Place Capital Corp purchased a new position in Valvoline in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Valvoline by 54.9% in the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 931 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. purchased a new position in Valvoline during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Valvoline by 127.1% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,465 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Valvoline in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Valvoline from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Valvoline from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $37.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Valvoline from $36.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Mizuho assumed coverage on Valvoline in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.75.

Valvoline Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE:VVV traded down $0.17 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $43.03. 88,614 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,194,460. The firm has a market cap of $5.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.34 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.80. Valvoline Inc. has a 52-week low of $29.15 and a 52-week high of $45.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.02, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 2.14.

Valvoline (NYSE:VVV) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.29. Valvoline had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 92.04%. The business had revenue of $373.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $380.10 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.16 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Valvoline Inc. will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

About Valvoline

Valvoline Inc engages in the operation and franchising of vehicle service centers and retail stores in the United States and Canada. The company, through its service centers, provides fluid exchange for motor oil, transmission and differential fluid, and coolant; parts replacement for batteries, filters, wiper blades, and belts; and safety services, such as tire inflation and rotation, bulbs, and safety checks.