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Stock Comparison · Structural lead, mixed market

BP p.l.c. vs Valero Energy: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

BP p.l.c holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across profitability and growth. Valero Energy still leads on valuation and stability, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. In the market, Valero Energy carries the stronger setup — intact trend against BP p.l.c's broken trend. That leaves a split case: the structural lead stays with BP p.l.c, but the market is not currently confirming it.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels. Peer scores are normalised within each company's primary universe (BP.L: STOXX 600, VLO: S&P 500).

Updated 2026-07-05

This is not just a one-metric split: both profitability and growth materially support the lead. BP p.l.c. leads by 14 points on the overall comparison score.

Trajectory Similarity
0.75
Similar
Peer-set rank: #10
within BP p.l.c.'s functional peer set

This pair is matched through long-term financial trajectory similarity within the selected peer universe.

The pair sits on a clearly comparable long-term path, though it is not a near-twin match.

The match is driven mainly by revenue growth trajectory and margin trend.

Similarity drivers
revenue growth trajectorymargin trend
How to read the score
0.85–1.00 · Very similar0.70–0.84 · Similar0.55–0.69 · Moderately similarbelow 0.55 · Loose match
Peer-Relative Score
BP.L
BP p.l.c.
71
Peer-Score
Signal qualityMedium
Peer basis: STOXX 600
vs
VLO
Valero Energy Corporation
57
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: S&P 500

Scores reflect position relative to comparable companies with similar long-term financial trajectories.

The largest gaps do not all point in the same direction.

Dimension spread: BP.L vs VLO Profitability 91 35 Stability 53 69 Valuation 45 78 Growth 97 47 BP.L VLO
Gap Ranking
#1 Profitability +56
#2 Growth +50
#3 Valuation +33
#4 Stability +16
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for BP.L and VLO Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer BP.LVLO Relative valuation Structural strength

BP p.l.c. is stronger, but the price setup still looks more supportive for Valero Energy Corporation.

Valuation position uses peer-relative PE percentile (idx_pct_pe) where available.

Entry today — historical context

Where BP.L and VLO each sit in their own 5-year price and valuation history.

BASED ON 5-YEAR HISTORY BP.L Neutral · above norm 0th 50th 100th 35 pct gap VLO Elevated · above norm 0th 50th 100th 64th 99th
Today BP.L sits in the upper-middle of its own 5-year history (64th percentile), while VLO sits higher in its own history (99th). Within each stock's own 5-year context, BP.L is at a historically more favourable entry position than VLO. This reflects entry timing, not which company is structurally stronger — peer-relative analysis is a separate question addressed above.

Describes historical entry positioning only. Descriptive — not investment advice.

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Profitability
BP p.l.c. ranks near the top of the group on profitability; Valero Energy Corporation sits in the weaker half.
Growth
On growth, the edge is clear — both rank well, but BP p.l.c. sits noticeably higher.
Profitability — Dominant Gap
BP.L
91
VLO
35
Gap+56in favour of BP.L

The profitability lead is mainly driven by a 9.4-point operating margin advantage.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

Absolute pricing still looks more supportive for Valero Energy, with a trailing P/E that is 9.6 turns lower there.

What this means for the comparison

The lead is built on both profitability and growth — though valuation still provides a counterweight.

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the BP.L vs VLO comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

Explore full breakdown →
Other comparisons with conflicting dimension signals

Explore how BP.L and VLO each compare against other companies in their peer groups.

Rule-based, descriptive analysis only. Derived from peer percentile dimensions. Not investment advice. Peer groups are determined algorithmically based on structural similarity — not by sector classification alone.

How AssetNext Peer Scores Work

AssetNext scores reflect each company's structural position within its functional peer group — not a ranking against all stocks simultaneously. Peers are identified by similarity across eight financial dimensions, including revenue growth trajectory, margin structure, capital intensity, and earnings stability. A score of 75 means the company ranks in the top quartile within its own peer group, not the entire market.

Four dimension scores drive the overall peer score: Growth (revenue trajectory and expansion dynamics), Quality (margin structure and capital efficiency), Valuation (peer-relative pricing on standard multiples), and Stability (earnings consistency and financial predictability). Each dimension is scored 0–100 relative to the peer group, then combined into an overall peer score using equal weighting.

Because scores are peer-relative, the same company can have slightly different scores in different index universes. On comparison pages, both companies are shown within their shared peer universe wherever possible — so the scores are directly comparable. The peer basis is stated on each score card.

Scores are recalculated periodically as underlying financial data is updated. All analysis is descriptive and rule-based — AssetNext describes structural realities and never issues buy, sell or hold recommendations.