Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Strong-Buy Rating

05 Apr 2026, 06:38 by Kim Johansen · The Markets Daily

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO – Free Report) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on VLO. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Valero Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Valero Energy from $203.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Valero Energy from $220.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Argus upgraded Valero Energy to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Valero Energy from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.80.

View Our Latest Report on Valero Energy

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO stock opened at $244.02 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $215.18 and a 200-day moving average of $186.86. The company has a market cap of $72.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Valero Energy has a 52 week low of $99.00 and a 52 week high of $258.43.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $30.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.20 billion. Valero Energy had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 12.35%. Valero Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Valero Energy will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This is a boost from Valero Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.83%.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 8,311 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.69, for a total value of $1,892,331.59. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 42,242 shares in the company, valued at $9,618,080.98. This represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VLO. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Valero Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 70.2% during the 3rd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. AXS Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates bought a new position in shares of Valero Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valero Energy Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.