Valero Energy rises as refining margins stay elevated and traders position ahead of earnings

Valero Energy (VLO) is up 3.8% today. Here is some analysis on what might have caused this price movement.

Analysis: The move appears tied to renewed strength in the refining trade, with fuel margins supported by ongoing Middle East-related supply disruptions and higher energy prices. The stock may also be seeing pre-earnings positioning ahead of Valero’s scheduled quarterly results, alongside incremental confidence that recent operational disruptions are becoming more manageable.

Details:

Refining profitability indicators strengthened during the Iran conflict, with distillate (diesel) margins highlighted as particularly strong versus earlier in the quarter.

Valero is expected to report quarterly results before the market opens on April 30, 2026, which can drive short-term buying as investors reposition around earnings risk.

Recent refinery disruption headlines have included progress toward restarting operations at Valero’s Port Arthur, Texas refinery after a late-March explosion and fire, potentially easing worst-case outage concerns.

Broader market attention has remained on the war-driven jump in oil prices, keeping energy-linked equities active in the session.

Sources:

Associated Press, Reuters, MarketBeat

Disclaimer: This price movement analysis was generated with the help of AI. Please double-check the information provided for mistakes.

$VLO Insider Trading Activity

$VLO insiders have traded $VLO stock on the open market 4 times in the past 6 months. Of those trades, 0 have been purchases and 4 have been sales.

Here’s a breakdown of recent trading of $VLO stock by insiders over the last 6 months:

ERIC A FISHER (SVP) has made 0 purchases and 3 sales selling 8,711 shares for an estimated $1,987,772.
JASON W. FRASER (EVP & CFO) sold 9,933 shares for an estimated $1,728,539

To track insider transactions, check out Quiver Quantitative's insider trading dashboard. You can access data on insider stock transactions through the Quiver Quantitative API.

$VLO Hedge Fund Activity

We have seen 808 institutional investors add shares of $VLO stock to their portfolio, and 699 decrease their positions in their most recent quarter.

Here are some of the largest recent moves:

UBS AM, A DISTINCT BUSINESS UNIT OF UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC removed 4,951,621 shares (-76.1%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $806,074,382
PRICE T ROWE ASSOCIATES INC /MD/ removed 2,002,124 shares (-16.6%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $325,925,765
AGF MANAGEMENT LTD added 1,625,435 shares (+5195.9%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $264,604,563
INVESCO LTD. removed 1,054,565 shares (-29.0%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $171,672,636
JPMORGAN CHASE & CO removed 958,664 shares (-38.4%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $156,060,912
PACER ADVISORS, INC. added 915,782 shares (+2635.7%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $149,080,151
FMR LLC added 868,566 shares (+14.7%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $141,393,859

To track hedge funds' stock portfolios, check out Quiver Quantitative's institutional holdings dashboard. You can access data on hedge funds moves and 13F filings through the Quiver Quantitative API.

$VLO Congressional Stock Trading

Members of Congress have traded $VLO stock 1 times in the past 6 months. Of those trades, 0 have been purchases and 1 have been sales.

Here’s a breakdown of recent trading of $VLO stock by members of Congress over the last 6 months:

REPRESENTATIVE GILBERT RAY CISNEROS, JR. sold up to $15,000 on 01/09.

To track congressional stock trading, check out Quiver Quantitative's congressional trading dashboard. You can access data on congressional stock trades through the Quiver Quantitative API.

$VLO Analyst Ratings

Wall Street analysts have issued reports on $VLO in the last several months. We have seen 3 firms issue buy ratings on the stock, and 0 firms issue sell ratings.

Here are some recent analyst ratings:

Barclays issued a "Overweight" rating on 11/17/2025
Piper Sandler issued a "Overweight" rating on 11/14/2025
Wells Fargo issued a "Overweight" rating on 11/10/2025

To track analyst ratings and price targets for $VLO, check out Quiver Quantitative's $VLO forecast page.

$VLO Price Targets

Multiple analysts have issued price targets for $VLO recently. We have seen 15 analysts offer price targets for $VLO in the last 6 months, with a median target of $246.0.

Here are some recent targets:

Jason Gabelman from TD Cowen set a target price of $255.0 on 04/27/2026
Joe Laetsch from Morgan Stanley set a target price of $222.0 on 04/24/2026
Betty Zhang from Scotiabank set a target price of $226.0 on 04/22/2026
Doug Leggate from Wolfe Research set a target price of $203.0 on 04/21/2026
Vikram Bagri from Citigroup set a target price of $246.0 on 04/15/2026
Ryan Todd from Piper Sandler set a target price of $263.0 on 04/08/2026
Theresa Chen from Barclays set a target price of $261.0 on 04/08/2026

This article is not financial advice. See Quiver Quantitative's disclaimers for more information. Note that there may be inaccuracies due to mistakes in ticker-mapping, and other anomalies.