Erste Group Bank Boosts Earnings Estimates for Valero Energy

Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) – Investment analysts at Erste Group Bank lifted their FY2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Valero Energy in a research report issued on Wednesday, July 15th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now forecasts that the oil and gas company will post earnings per share of $32.09 for the year, up from their previous forecast of $28.12. The consensus estimate for Valero Energy’s current full-year earnings is $32.61 per share. Erste Group Bank also issued estimates for Valero Energy’s FY2027 earnings at $23.00 EPS.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $1.06. The business had revenue of $32.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 3.37%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 EPS.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on VLO. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Valero Energy from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $261.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Valero Energy from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $220.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Valero Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $255.76.

Valero Energy Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of Valero Energy stock opened at $314.77 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.58. Valero Energy has a 52 week low of $130.78 and a 52 week high of $318.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $261.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $231.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.46 billion, a PE ratio of 22.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 0.55.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valero Energy

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 40.7% in 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 in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Valero Energy by 13.0% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,929 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in Valero Energy during the second quarter worth about $528,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Valero Energy by 11.3% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 269,043 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $36,165,000 after purchasing an additional 27,291 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in Valero Energy by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 145,810 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $19,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,338 shares in the last quarter. 78.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 7,500 shares of Valero Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.17, for a total transaction of $2,011,275.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,742 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,294,212.14. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.88%.

Key Stories Impacting Valero Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen raised its price target on Valero Energy to $338 from $292, suggesting additional upside even though the firm kept a hold rating. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Valero as a top long-term growth stock, reinforcing the view that the refiner still has strong fundamentals and investor appeal. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Valero has been trading near record levels after a recent breakout to a new 52-week high, indicating strong technical momentum. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group Bank reportedly raised its FY2026 EPS estimate for Valero, but no additional details were provided. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader energy-sector headlines remain mixed, with strong refinery economics supporting some names while other refining-related stories point to uneven earnings trends elsewhere in the group. Article

Valero Energy Company Profile

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.