News

Gasoline prices are punishing drivers at the pump while a handful of companies are posting the most profitable quarters in their histories, and the structural reason this keeps happening has nothing to do with luck or crude oil prices.

Antero Resources posts record Q2 production, revenue growth and higher cash flow, while raising its 2026 output guidance after strategic acquisitions.

Valero Energy (VLO) delivered earnings and revenue surprises of +27.05% and +23.73%, respectively, for the quarter ended June 2026. Do the numbers hold clues to what lies ahead for the stock?

EARNINGS Valero Energy said its earnings surged in the second quarter, thanks to sturdy fuel demand. The San Antonio oil refiner posted a profit of $3.72 billion, or $12.62 a share, compared with $714 million, or $2.

Oil prices jumped on Monday as President Donald Trump said the U.S. will reimpose a blockade on Iranian ports and provide other countries safe passage —for a fee — through the Strait of Hormuz. The announcement follows an escalation of U.S.-Iran military strikes after Tehran had targeted ships in the Strait traveling an alternative path to the Tehran-approved route open for ships paying a fee to the regime. With U.S.-Iran negotiations at an impasse over control of the key global shipping route and Tehran's nuclear program, the diplomatic route — and Wall Street's assumption that flare-ups in fighting won't lead the sides back to war — is facing its biggest test.

Oil prices jumped on Monday amid escalation of Middle East conflict as the U.S. challenged Iran's assertion of control over the Strait of Hormuz. With U.S.-Iran negotiations at an impasse over the key global shipping route and Tehran's nuclear program, Wall Street's assumption that flare-ups in fighting won't lead the sides back to war is being tested, but still holding firm. With Iran declaring the Strait of Hormuz closed, S&P 500 futures traded slightly lower, with APA, Occidental Petroleum and Devon Energy trading high on the index.

Valero Energy and two other refiners topped buy points this week amid high crude oil prices, before slipping somewhat on Wednesday.

The S&P 500 Index ($SPX ) (SPY ) on Friday closed down -1.24%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DOWI ) (DIA ) closed down -1.07%, and the Nasdaq 100 Index ($IUXX ) (QQQ ) closed down -1.54%. June E-mini S&P futures (ESM26 ) fell -1.26%, and June E-mini Nasdaq futures...