Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Moderate Buy consensus from 21 analysts with an average 12‑month target of $222, while several firms have lifted targets into the $260–$290 range (e.g., UBS $280, Raymond James $290), signaling analyst confidence in upside.
• Port Arthur explosion on March 23 destroyed a diesel hydrotreater and the control room, risking constrained refinery output, higher repair costs and legal exposure after a lawsuit alleging gross negligence.
• Valero beat quarterly expectations with $3.82 EPS (vs. $3.27 expected) on $30.37B revenue and recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.20 ($4.80 annual, ~2% yield), highlighting solid near‑term cash returns despite operational risks.

Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-one analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $222.00.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $215.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Mizuho reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $192.00 price target (up from $190.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a research report on Friday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Scotiabank raised shares of Valero Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th.

Valero Energy News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Valero Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target on VLO to $261 and kept an "overweight" rating, signaling confidence in Valero's outlook. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler bumped its target to $263 and maintained an "overweight" view, another institutional vote of confidence. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reiterated its "buy" rating on Valero, and BMO coverage also signaled expected upside—supporting the case for further appreciation if operational issues are resolved. Article Title Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary notes VLO has delivered strong year-to-date and multi-year returns, which may temper investor sentiment about valuation even as fundamentals remain in focus. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reports the March 23 Port Arthur explosion destroyed a diesel hydrotreater and the control room for multiple hydrotreating units — a significant operational hit for Valero’s 380,000 bpd refinery that could constrain output, raise repair costs and pressure margins. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: A lawsuit alleges gross negligence tied to the Port Arthur incident, introducing legal exposure and regulatory scrutiny that increase uncertainty about potential liabilities and remediation timelines. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage noting the stock fell amid a market uptick underscores that the operational/legal news is outweighing analyst upgrades in near-term trading. Article Title

Valero Energy Stock Performance

NYSE VLO opened at $239.79 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $218.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $188.58. Valero Energy has a 12-month low of $101.66 and a 12-month high of $258.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market cap of $71.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.39, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.62.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.55. Valero Energy had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 12.35%. The business had revenue of $30.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.64 EPS. Valero Energy's revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Valero Energy will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. This is a positive change from Valero Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Valero Energy's payout ratio is presently 62.83%.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 8,311 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.69, for a total transaction of $1,892,331.59. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 42,242 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,618,080.98. The trade was a 16.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VLO. Woodline Partners LP boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 40.7% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 26,747 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,532,000 after acquiring an additional 7,735 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,929 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $464,000. CW Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 16.3% during the 2nd quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 3,178 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $427,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 16,875 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,268,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation is a San Antonio, Texas–based integrated downstream energy company that manufactures and markets transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and other industrial products. The company's operations focus on refining crude oil into finished fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as producing asphalt and other refined product streams for commercial and industrial customers.

In addition to refining, Valero has significant operations in renewable fuels, including the production of ethanol and other biofuels, and it manages an extensive logistics network of pipelines, terminals, rail and marine assets to move feedstocks and finished products.

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