Analyst spotlights oil refiners’ outperformance
Major US oil refiners like Valero, Marathon Petroleum, and Phillips 66 are outperforming more than 90% of the S&P 500 this year, as a surge in global supply from OPEC+ — essentially a price-setting alliance between OPEC and Russia — has put refiners in the catbird seat when it comes to price negotiations with producers.
“We continue to assess that refiners will set the price of crude and refiners will win in a wide range of scenarios for crude, making refiners the best vehicle for long petroleum exposure,” wrote Colin Fenton, head of commodities research at 22V Research.
Crack spreads, a measure of profit margins at refiners, have risen nearly 50% so far this year.
