How much a stock's price changes over time is important for most investors, since price performance can both impact your investment portfolio and help you compare investment results across sectors and industries.
FOMO, or the fear of missing out, also plays a role in investing, particularly with tech giants and popular consumer-facing stocks.
What if you'd invested in Valero Energy (VLO) ten years ago? It may not have been easy to hold on to VLO for all that time, but if you did, how much would your investment be worth today?
Valero Energy's Business In-Depth
With that in mind, let's take a look at Valero Energy's main business drivers.
San Antonio, TX-based Valero Energy Corporation is the largest independent refiner and marketer of petroleum products in the United States. The company was founded in 1980. It has a refining capacity of 3 million barrels per day across 14 refineries located throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.Moreover, Valero is a leading ethanol producer with 12 ethanol plants in the Midwest that have a combined capacity of 1.7 billion gallons per year. The products of the company are sold in the markets of the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Latin America. The company’s brand names are carried by around 7,000 outlets.
The company organizes its business through three reportable segments, namely, Refining, Ethanol and Renewable Diesel.
Refining: It includes refining operations, wholesale marketing, product supply and distribution, and transportation operations. This segment is segregated geographically into the Gulf Coast, mid-continent, West Coast and Northeast regions.
Ethanol: The Ethanol segment includes sales of internally produced ethanol and distillers’ grains. Operations of this segment are geographically located in the Central Plains region of the United States.
Renewable Diesel: In the first quarter of 2019, the company created this segment. The Renewable Diesel segment incorporates the operations of a consolidated joint venture, Diamond Green Diesel. Notably, the renewable diesel plant is North America’s largest biomass-based diesel plant and it is located in Norco, LA.
Bottom Line
Anyone can invest, but building a successful investment portfolio takes a combination of a few things: research, patience, and a little bit of risk. So, if you had invested in Valero Energy a decade ago, you're probably feeling pretty good about your investment today.
A $1000 investment made in June 2016 would be worth $4,740.71, or a 374.07% gain, as of June 4, 2026, according to our calculations. Investors should note that this return excludes dividends but includes price increases.
Compare this to the S&P 500's rally of 259.85% and gold's return of 243.09% over the same time frame.
Analysts are forecasting more upside for VLO too.
Valero reported strong first-quarter 2026 earnings on strong refining margins. VLO benefits from one of the most diversified refining networks among independent refiners, with 14 refineries across the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean totaling 3.0 million barrels per day (MMBPD) of capacity. Valero's sophisticated system allows use of lower-cost crude, supporting strong refining margins and profitability. Gulf Coast assets drive robust export volumes, supported by strong global demand for gasoline, jet fuel, and diesel across Canada, Mexico, Europe, and South America. VLO also maintains strong shareholder returns via dividends and buybacks. Additionally, stricter IMO sulfur standards and rising EPA renewable fuel mandates position the company to benefit from higher distillate and renewable diesel demand through its Diamond Green Diesel project.
Shares have gained 10.46% over the past four weeks and there have been 9 higher earnings estimate revisions for fiscal 2026 compared to none lower. The consensus estimate has moved up as well.
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Valero Energy Corporation (VLO): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).