Wright Investors Service Inc. Sells 4,128 Shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

Wright Investors Service Inc. decreased its stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 12.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,943 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,128 shares during the period. Valero Energy makes up 1.1% of Wright Investors Service Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $3,763,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Valero Energy by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 31,652 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,115,000 after purchasing an additional 1,396 shares during the period. Key Financial Inc grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 27.2% in the 4th quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 467 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 56,398.4% in the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 70,623 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $9,181,000 after buying an additional 70,498 shares in the last quarter. Scissortail Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Valero Energy by 931.3% in the 4th quarter. Scissortail Wealth Management LLC now owns 22,369 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,095,000 after buying an additional 20,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tyche Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $678,000. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Valero Energy stock traded down $3.03 on Thursday, hitting $164.25. 946,814 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,335,150. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.61 billion, a PE ratio of 6.68, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.56. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $157.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.95. Valero Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $104.18 and a 1 year high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The oil and gas company reported $3.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.95 by $0.60. Valero Energy had a net margin of 6.10% and a return on equity of 31.62%. The business had revenue of $35.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.45 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 17.25 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Mizuho lowered shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $173.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $130.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Raymond James increased their target price on Valero Energy from $154.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $167.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has 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 $173.63.

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.