As previously reported, Morgan Stanley analyst Benny Wong upgraded Valero (VLO) to Overweight from Equal Weight, stating that recent underinvestment in refining, slippages in capacity additions and overdone concerns on long-term demand have set the stage for refining to enter a "golden age" through 2020. While the world is falling short by about one refinery annually until 2020, jet fuel, mining, chemicals and heavy transport demand are "here to stay," argues Wong and his team at the firm. The shift in global oil supply towards light oil and regulations to control pollution should drive outsized returns for complex refiners, added the analyst, who called Valero and Marathon Petroleum (MPC) his top U.S. picks in the space. Wong raised his price target on Valero to $140 from $110 and increased his target on Marathon to $100 from $90.

Citi analyst Vikram Bagri raised the firm's price target on Valero to $192 from $160 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The analyst refreshed the company's model for the latest commodity prices. Valero embarked on a larger maintenance period in Q1, which should position the company well ahead of a potentially strong summer driving season, the analyst tells investors in a research note. However, Citi sees low prospects for a sharp price reaction to the Q1 print with the shares up 29% year-to-date.