Raymond James Financial Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) Stock

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) had its price objective increased by Raymond James Financial from $215.00 to $290.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “strong-buy” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Raymond James Financial’s price objective points to a potential upside of 23.17% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Argus upgraded Valero Energy to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 target price (up from $190.00) on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Friday, December 12th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Valero Energy from $190.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Valero Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Valero Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.53.

Valero Energy Stock Down 2.6%

Valero Energy stock traded down $6.30 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $235.45. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,736,065 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,880,685. Valero Energy has a 52-week low of $99.00 and a 52-week high of $247.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.81, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $205.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $182.18.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $3.82 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 firm had revenue of $30.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.64 EPS. Valero Energy’s revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Valero Energy will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Valero Energy

In other Valero Energy news, SVP Eric A. Fisher sold 8,311 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.69, for a total transaction of $1,892,331.59. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 42,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,618,080.98. This represents a 16.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,111,542,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the third quarter worth $275,239,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 2,635.7% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 950,527 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $154,736,000 after purchasing an additional 915,782 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Valero Energy by 49.3% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,696,811 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $276,224,000 after purchasing an additional 560,116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Valero Energy by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,668,210 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $922,728,000 after purchasing an additional 394,693 shares during the period. 78.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Valero Energy News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Raymond James sharply raised its price target to $290 (from $215) and kept a Strong Buy rating — a high‑profile upgrade that can attract buying interest and lift sentiment. Why Raymond James Is Calling for a $290 Price Tag on Valero (VLO)
• Positive Sentiment: Macro/sector tailwinds favor refiners: higher oil volatility and widening crack spreads boost refining margins, and recent commentary highlights Valero’s scale, Q4 throughput strength, dividend and strategic moves (e.g., California exit) that underpin a bullish case. Energy Stocks Surge on Oil Spike: Buy, Hold, or Take Profits?
• Neutral Sentiment: Local law enforcement says there’s no evidence the Port Arthur blast was intentional — this reduces one tail risk (criminal/terrorism angle) but doesn’t remove outage/repair uncertainty. No evidence Valero Texas refinery blast caused by intentional act, sheriff’s office
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports indicate Valero is preparing to restart the 380,000 bpd Port Arthur refinery this week — a positive sign for recovery but timing, partial capacity and inspection outcomes remain uncertain. Valero prepares restart of Port Arthur, Texas oil refinery after blast, sources say
• Negative Sentiment: A major explosion and fire forced a full temporary shutdown of the Port Arthur refinery — the outage creates near‑term lost production, potential repair costs and margin volatility while inspections continue. Valero shuts Texas refinery after explosion, sources say
• Negative Sentiment: A company filing said a fluid release ignited the blast — that detail may prompt regulator scrutiny, remediation costs and longer‑term operational reviews. Fluid release ignited blast, fire at Valero refinery, filing shows

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.