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Valero Energy (VLO) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know

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Valero Energy (VLO - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $82.34, moving -1.47% from the previous trading session. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.76%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.82%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.9%.

Coming into today, shares of the oil refiner had lost 21.09% in the past month. In that same time, the Oils-Energy sector lost 9.61%, while the S&P 500 lost 1.41%.

Wall Street will be looking for positivity from VLO as it approaches its next earnings report date. This is expected to be February 7, 2019. In that report, analysts expect VLO to post earnings of $1.29 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 11.21%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $30.87 billion, up 16.98% from the year-ago period.

For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $6.47 per share and revenue of $118.14 billion, which would represent changes of +30.44% and +25.71%, respectively, from the prior year.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for VLO. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.24% lower. VLO currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

In terms of valuation, VLO is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 12.92. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 13.25, so we one might conclude that VLO is trading at a discount comparatively.

Investors should also note that VLO has a PEG ratio of 0.68 right now. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.01 at yesterday's closing price.

The Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry is part of the Oils-Energy sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 163, which puts it in the bottom 37% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow VLO in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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