First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Lowers Position in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. cut its stake in Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,864 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 527 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,007,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 2.8% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,956,743 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,090,532,000 after buying an additional 192,397 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 5.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,319,436 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $677,007,000 after buying an additional 237,347 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 1.9% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,018,107 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $473,118,000 after buying an additional 56,989 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 3.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,809,355 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $440,394,000 after buying an additional 82,539 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 3.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,063,923 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $352,292,000 after buying an additional 65,632 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valero Energy Price Performance

Shares of VLO opened at $128.69 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Valero Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $119.88 and a twelve month high of $184.79. The company has a market capitalization of $41.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $137.31 and a 200 day moving average of $148.99.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.01%. The business had revenue of $32.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $7.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Valero Energy Co. will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $172.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $177.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $173.00 to $141.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $156.29.

About Valero Energy

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.