Sectors & IndustriesEnergy

Best Energy Stocks to Buy Now (2026)

Top energy stocks in 2026 ranked by overall Due Diligence Score. See the best energy stocks to buy now, according to analyst forecasts for the energy sector.

According to Zen Ratings, our proprietary rating system that evaluates 115 factors proven to drive growth in stocks and assigns each stock in our system an overall letter grade as well as 7 individual Component Grades for Value, Growth, Momentum, Sentiment, Safety, Financials, and proprietary AI algorithms, the 3 best energy stocks to buy right now are:

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) is the #1 top energy stock out of 219 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +32.52% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) is: Value: B, Growth: A, Momentum: B, Sentiment: B, Safety: C, Financials: B, and AI: B.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) has a Due Diligence Score of 46, which is 16 points higher than the energy sector average of 30. It passed 16 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Valero Energy has seen its stock return 102.09% over the past year, overperforming other energy stocks by 64 percentage points.

Valero Energy has an average 1 year price target of $243.00, an upside of 2.81% from Valero Energy's current stock price of $236.35.

Valero Energy stock has a consensus Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 15 analysts covering Valero Energy, 46.67% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 13.33% have issued a Buy, 33.33% have issued a Hold, while 6.67% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

Hf Sinclair (NYSE:DINO) is the #2 top energy stock out of 219 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +32.52% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for Hf Sinclair (NYSE:DINO) is: Value: C, Growth: A, Momentum: B, Sentiment: B, Safety: C, Financials: B, and AI: A.

Hf Sinclair (NYSE:DINO) has a Due Diligence Score of 54, which is 24 points higher than the energy sector average of 30. It passed 19 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Hf Sinclair has seen its stock return 115.6% over the past year, overperforming other energy stocks by 77 percentage points.

Hf Sinclair has an average 1 year price target of $66.58, a downside of -5.56% from Hf Sinclair's current stock price of $70.50.

Hf Sinclair stock has a consensus Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 12 analysts covering Hf Sinclair, 41.67% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 16.67% have issued a Buy, 41.67% have issued a Hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) is the #3 top energy stock out of 219 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +32.52% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) is: Value: B, Growth: B, Momentum: B, Sentiment: B, Safety: C, Financials: C, and AI: C.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) has a Due Diligence Score of 45, which is 15 points higher than the energy sector average of 30. It passed 16 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Marathon Petroleum has seen its stock return 67.43% over the past year, overperforming other energy stocks by 29 percentage points.

Marathon Petroleum has an average 1 year price target of $261.92, an upside of 8.11% from Marathon Petroleum's current stock price of $242.26.

Marathon Petroleum stock has a consensus Strong Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 12 analysts covering Marathon Petroleum, 50% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 25% have issued a Buy, 25% have issued a Hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

Out of 133 energy stocks that have issued dividends in the past year, the 3 energy stocks with the highest dividend yields are:

Icahn Enterprises (NASDAQ:IEP) has an annual dividend yield of 25.06%, which is 22 percentage points higher than the energy sector average of 3.44%. Icahn Enterprises's dividend payout is not stable, having dropped more than 10% two times in the last 10 years. Icahn Enterprises's dividend has not shown consistent growth over the last 10 years.

Icahn Enterprises's dividend payout ratio of -400% indicates that its high dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

Mach Natural Resources (NYSE:MNR) has an annual dividend yield of 14.95%, which is 12 percentage points higher than the energy sector average of 3.44%.

Mach Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio of 180.7% indicates that its high dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

Txo Partners (NYSE:TXO) has an annual dividend yield of 13.68%, which is 10 percentage points higher than the energy sector average of 3.44%.

Txo Partners's dividend payout ratio of -92.9% indicates that its high dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

Energy stocks were down -1.45% in the last day, and down -5.08% over the last week. Profrac Holding was the among the top losers in the energy sector, dropping -7.71% yesterday.

ProFrac Holding shares are trading lower after the company reported worse-than-expected Q1 sales results.

Based on the Valuation rating, one of the 7 components of a stocks overall Zen Ratings grade, which evaluates factors including estimated earnings yield, earnings before interest and taxes/enterprise value, cash flow yield, free cash flow to price, and price-to-earnings growth (PEG ratio), the 3 most undervalued energy stocks right now are:

Sm Energy Co (NYSE:SM) is the most undervalued energy stock based on its Valuation Rating of A. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

Sm Energy Co has a valuation score of 71, which is 46 points higher than the energy sector average of 25. It passed 5 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Sm Energy Co's stock has gained 37.26% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the energy sector by -1 percentage points.

Imperial Petroleum /Marshall Islands (NASDAQ:IMPP) is the second most undervalued energy stock based on its Valuation Rating of A. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

Imperial Petroleum /Marshall Islands has a valuation score of 71, which is 46 points higher than the energy sector average of 25. It passed 5 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Imperial Petroleum /Marshall Islands's stock has gained 86.69% in the past year. It has overperformed other stocks in the energy sector by 48 percentage points.

Dynagas Lng Partners (NYSE:DLNG) is the third most undervalued energy stock based on its Valuation Rating of A. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

Dynagas Lng Partners has a valuation score of 43, which is 18 points higher than the energy sector average of 25. It passed 3 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Dynagas Lng Partners's stock has gained 6.96% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the energy sector by -31 percentage points.

38.31% of energy stocks rated by analysts are a strong buy right now. On average, analysts expect energy stocks to rise by 12.72% over the next year.

8.29% of energy stocks have a Zen Rating of A (Strong Buy), 12.2% of energy stocks are rated B (Buy), 64.39% are rated C (Hold), 11.71% are rated D (Sell), and 3.41% are rated F (Strong Sell).