Oil refiner Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) reported first-quarter 2015 earnings before markets opened Tuesday. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) totaled $1.87, compared with EPS a year ago of $1.54. Quarterly revenues totaled $21.33 billion, compared with revenues of $33.66 billion in the first quarter of 2014. The consensus estimate called for EPS of $1.67 on revenues of $15.37 billion.

Operating income in the refining segment rose by $361 million to $1.6 billion, primarily due to an increase on throughput margin per barrel from $10.90 in 2014 to $12.39 this year. Valero attributed the margin increase to stronger gasoline and secondary product margins per barrel relative to Brent crude oil and lower natural gas costs.

First-quarter refining throughput averaged 2.7 million barrels a day, up 9,000 barrels a day from a year ago. Refineries operated at 92% of capacity in the quarter.

Ethanol income fell from $243 million a year ago to $12 million in the first quarter of 2015. The decrease in operating income was mainly due to lower gross margin per gallon, driven by a decline in gasoline and ethanol prices that more than offset a decline in corn prices. Average quarterly ethanol production volumes were 3.8 million gallons per day in the first quarter of 2015, an increase of 681,000 gallons per day versus the first quarter of 2014.

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Valero expects 2015 capital spending, including turnarounds and catalyst, to be $2.65 billion, as previously guided.

Consensus estimates call for fourth-quarter EPS of $1.98 on revenues of $15.53 billion. For the full year, EPS is forecast at $6.64 on revenues of $71.15 billion.

Shares of Valero were inactive in Tuesday’s premarket, having closed at $59.40 on Monday, in a 52-week range of $42.53 to $64.49. The consensus target price for the shares was around $70.80 before the report.

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