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 223 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +28.5% per year. Learn more.

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

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) has a Due Diligence Score of 50, which is 18 points higher than the energy sector average of 32. It passed 18 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Valero Energy has seen its stock return 127.03% over the past year, overperforming other energy stocks by 143 percentage points.

Valero Energy has an average 1 year price target of $301.93, a downside of -0.35% from Valero Energy's current stock price of $302.99.

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.

Par Pacific Holdings (NYSE:PARR) is the #2 top energy stock out of 223 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +28.5% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for Par Pacific Holdings (NYSE:PARR) is: Value: A, Growth: B, Momentum: B, Sentiment: B, Safety: C, Financials: A, and AI: B.

Par Pacific Holdings (NYSE:PARR) has a Due Diligence Score of 53, which is 21 points higher than the energy sector average of 32. It passed 17 out of 33 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Par Pacific Holdings has seen its stock return 154.49% over the past year, overperforming other energy stocks by 171 percentage points.

Par Pacific Holdings has an average 1 year price target of $81.57, an upside of 18.32% from Par Pacific Holdings's current stock price of $68.94.

Par Pacific Holdings stock has a consensus Strong Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 7 analysts covering Par Pacific Holdings, 57.14% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 28.57% have issued a Buy, 14.29% have issued a Hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

Hf Sinclair (NYSE:DINO) is the #3 top energy stock out of 223 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +28.5% per year. Learn more.

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

Hf Sinclair (NYSE:DINO) has a Due Diligence Score of 54, which is 22 points higher than the energy sector average of 32. It passed 19 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Hf Sinclair has seen its stock return 91.24% over the past year, overperforming other energy stocks by 108 percentage points.

Hf Sinclair has an average 1 year price target of $76.79, a downside of -7.4% from Hf Sinclair's current stock price of $82.92.

Hf Sinclair stock has a consensus Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 14 analysts covering Hf Sinclair, 35.71% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 7.14% have issued a Buy, 57.14% have issued a Hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

Out of 136 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 26.21%, which is 22 percentage points higher than the energy sector average of 3.92%. 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 -277.8% 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 13.66%, which is 10 percentage points higher than the energy sector average of 3.92%.

Mach Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio of 255.8% indicates that its high dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

Evolution Petroleum (NYSEMKT:EPM) has an annual dividend yield of 13.52%, which is 10 percentage points higher than the energy sector average of 3.92%. Evolution Petroleum's dividend payout is not stable, having dropped more than 10% one times in the last 10 years. Evolution Petroleum's dividend has shown consistent growth over the last 10 years.

Evolution Petroleum's dividend payout ratio of -436.4% indicates that its high dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

Energy stocks were up 1.18% in the last day, and down -1.2% over the last week. Helmerich & Payne was the among the top gainers in the energy sector, gaining 11.39% yesterday.

Helmerich & Payne shares are trading higher after the company reported better-than-expected Q3 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:

Pbf Energy (NYSE:PBF) 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.

Pbf Energy 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.

Pbf Energy's stock has gained 169.42% in the past year. It has overperformed other stocks in the energy sector by 186 percentage points.

Ultrapar Holdings (NYSE:UGP) 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.

Ultrapar Holdings has a valuation score of 29, which is 4 points higher than the energy sector average of 25. It passed 2 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Ultrapar Holdings's stock has gained 104.82% in the past year. It has overperformed other stocks in the energy sector by 121 percentage points.

Riley Exploration Permian (NYSEMKT:REPX) 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.

Riley Exploration Permian 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.

Riley Exploration Permian's stock has gained 32.36% in the past year. It has overperformed other stocks in the energy sector by 49 percentage points.

44.79% of energy stocks rated by analysts are a strong buy right now. On average, analysts expect energy stocks to rise by 18.36% over the next year.

13.79% of energy stocks have a Zen Rating of A (Strong Buy), 17.24% of energy stocks are rated B (Buy), 52.71% are rated C (Hold), 10.84% are rated D (Sell), and 5.42% are rated F (Strong Sell).