MW: Goldman lifts view on refining, upgrades oil firms
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Goldman Sachs research analysts on Friday raised their oil refining coverage view to neutral from cautious on a better demand outlook, including an upgrade of Holly Corp. (HOC 25.04, +1.77, +7.61%) to buy from neutral and Sunoco to neutral from sell. Goldman also added Occidental Petroleum (OXY 76.68, +2.19, +2.94%) to its conviction buy list, joining Suncor (SU 34.30, -0.09, -0.26%) and Petrobras (PBR 44.39, +0.45, +1.02%) . "We increasingly believe we are moving through the trough of the refining cycle," Goldman analysts said in a note to clients. "We now see oil demand growth equal to or slightly in excess of refining capacity growth over the next few years. Unlike crude oil, we believe a refining recovery will be more gradual as we think a relatively high level of excess capacity will persist."
