Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Stock Falls 1.7% – Here’s Why

23 Oct 2026, 22:10 by Tristan Rich · The Markets Daily

Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO – Get Free Report)’s stock price fell 1.7% on Friday. The stock traded as low as $416.56 and last traded at $419.1860. 2,377,074 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 3,294,004 shares. The stock had previously closed at $426.28.

Key Stories Impacting Valero Energy

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

Positive Sentiment: Record earnings significantly exceeded expectations. Valero reported third-quarter adjusted EPS of $23.90, above the approximately $21.17 consensus, while revenue rose 43.3% year over year to $46.10 billion. Net income climbed to roughly $6.8 billion from $1.1 billion a year earlier. Valero Energy Reports Third Quarter 2026 Results
Positive Sentiment: Refining economics remain highly favorable. Refining margins nearly tripled year over year as fuel inventories stayed tight, supporting stronger profits even with lower throughput. Management also indicated that fuel margins could rise again, while renewable diesel and ethanol operations improved and ethanol production reached a record. Valero Q3 Earnings Surge Sixfold to $6.8 Billion on Refining Boom
Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised several price targets. Barclays increased its target to $443 and Wells Fargo raised its target to $489, with both maintaining overweight ratings. Citi also lifted its target to $490, although it retained a neutral rating. Analyst price-target updates
Neutral Sentiment: Strong cash generation improves financial flexibility. The earnings call highlighted approximately $9.8 billion in cash and disciplined capital spending, which support dividends and balance-sheet resilience. However, comparisons with Phillips 66 show that crude sourcing, diversification and valuation remain important differentiators among refiners. Valero Q3 Earnings Call Highlights Refining and Cash Strength
Negative Sentiment: One analyst remains cautious on valuation and margin sustainability. TD Cowen raised its target to $400 but kept a hold rating, placing its target below the recent trading level. Lower throughput and the potential for government efforts to reduce fuel prices also underscore the risk that unusually strong refining margins may normalize. Valero Energy Q3 Results Show Record Ethanol Production, Strong Profits

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Valero Energy from $395.00 to $414.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Freedom Broker restated a “sell” rating and set a $276.00 target price on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Friday. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $300.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upped their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $350.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $379.94.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Valero Energy

Valero Energy Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $391.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $309.38. The stock has a market cap of $120.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.39, a PEG ratio of 0.26 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.64.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The oil and gas company reported $23.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $21.17 by $2.73. The firm had revenue of $46.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.71 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 26.74% and a net margin of 5.17%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 43.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Valero Energy Corporation will post 52.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valero Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Valero Energy by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,027 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $398,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in Valero Energy by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 2,608 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,011,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC boosted its position in Valero Energy by 57.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC now owns 104 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 6,670 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,648,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. now owns 1,016 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $265,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Valero Energy Corporation is an international energy company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. The company’s primary business is refining and marketing transportation fuels, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other products used by commercial, industrial and consumer customers.

Valero operates refineries in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Its refining operations also produce asphalt, petrochemical feedstocks and other petroleum-based products. The company markets fuel through wholesale channels and branded retail networks, including Valero, Beacon and Shamrock-branded locations.