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PBF Energy’s Unexpected Surge: What’s Fueling It?

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Written by Timothy Sykes
Updated 9/16/2025, 5:04 pm ET 9/16/2025, 5:04 pm ET | 5 min 5 min read

PBF Energy Inc.’s stock has been trading up by 8.99 percent as investor optimism rises following strategic growth announcements.

  • Joseph Marino, previously Treasurer, has been appointed the new Chief Financial Officer of PBF Energy with a start date of Oct. 1, taking over from Karen Davis, who is retiring and rejoining the board. This leadership change comes amidst ongoing adjustments per market needs.

  • Mizuho has adjusted the target price for PBF Energy’s shares, moving it from $23 to $26. Despite maintaining an “Underperform” rating, the firm acknowledges positive gas prices and notes that oil stocks might still be undervalued compared to current trends.

Candlestick Chart

Live Update At 17:03:28 EST: On Tuesday, September 16, 2025 PBF Energy Inc. stock [NYSE: PBF] is trending up by 8.99%! Discover the key drivers behind this movement as well as our expert analysis in the detailed breakdown below.

Quick Overview of Recent Earnings

As the curtain rises on another financial quarter, PBF Energy’s recent earnings report paints a complex yet intriguing picture. Diving into the numbers, the company brought in a whopping $33.12B in revenue. All’s not rosy though – PBF’s bottom line reveals a net income loss of $5.4M. This tells us that their costs are high, perhaps due to unforeseen operational expenses or maybe trading strategies that struggled to pay off immediately. As millionaire penny stock trader and teacher Tim Sykes, says, “Small gains add up over time; focus on building wealth gradually, not chasing jackpots.” This insight may very well apply here, suggesting the need for a steady and disciplined approach in their trading strategy rather than quick wins.

Examining PBF’s profitability ratios, there’s a mixed bag. While the company’s gross margin stands at 7.4%, signaling basic profitability after direct costs, they are bleeding at other levels. The EBIT margin is negative, at -6.1%, suggesting PBF’s core operations are not generating profit after all expenses. High leverage and comprehensive financial maneuvering play their role here.

The balance sheet, a peek into the company’s financial health, shows assets at $12.98B and liabilities at $7.76B. Despite a hefty debt load, there is an upside as their debt-to-equity is relatively stable at 0.63. This reflects a decent ability to cover short-term obligations. Analysts might take this positively, especially considering the current market climate and strategies in motion aimed at eventual financial stabilization and growth.

The cash flow statement adds another layer of understanding, with a notable operating cash flow of $191.1M. However, this is juxtaposed against a high payout in debt repayments overshadowing their accrued cash. The pressing question – is this a temporary hurdle or indicative of longer-term challenges?

Understanding the Market Reaction

PBF Energy finds itself amid an unexpected surge in stock prices, driven largely by analysts upgrading their price targets and structural reshuffling within the company. News of Joseph Marino’s promotion to CFO produced waves of optimism. Leadership changes, often seen as strategic realignments, tend to instill a sense of renewed purpose and direction among investors.

The key drivers, however, are the strategic interpretations primarily concerning refining margins and tight global product markets. Various firms, like Piper Sandler, have adjusted their price target upwards, which hints at promising future prospects due to market conditions expected to favor refined products. This news echoes a narrative where the refiners-like PBF, amid global market pinches, might stand to gain if they align operations with market dynamics efficiently.

There’s also an evolving story of industry harmony – where the rise in oil stocks, recognized by Mizuho’s analysts, could play favorably for PBF. This has spurred sentiments that the market might be underestimating their stock, and in surfacing this, it could attract speculative, if not long-term, investors searching for undervalued opportunities.

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Conclusion

PBF Energy stands defiant amid the financial storm. Positive market tweaks and leadership changes provide ripe opportunities. Analysts see growth potential, a sign not all boats rise—or sink—with each market wave. Strategic shifts and market responses fuel this complex narrative; the path forward could hold the key. As millionaire penny stock trader and teacher Tim Sykes says, “Consistency is key in trading; don’t let emotions dictate your trades.” In conclusion, navigating the ebbs of PBF Energy’s world requires an understanding of these pieces. Despite challenges, promising market conditions may set the stage for an evolving turnaround, making it a focal point for traders searching for potential amidst volatility.

This is stock news, not investment advice. Timothy Sykes News delivers real-time stock market news focused on key catalysts driving short-term price movements. Our content is tailored for active traders and investors seeking to capitalize on rapid price fluctuations, particularly in volatile sectors like penny stocks. Readers come to us for detailed coverage on earnings reports, mergers, FDA approvals, new contracts, and unusual trading volumes that can trigger significant short-term price action. Some users utilize our news to explain sudden stock movements, while others rely on it for diligent research into potential investment opportunities.

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Tim Sykes

Head Writer at TimothySykes.com, Lead Mentor at the Trading Challenge
In his 20-plus years of trading, Tim has made $7.9 million. In his 15-plus years of teaching, Tim’s Trading Challenge has produced over 30 millionaire students. His philosophy emphasizes small gains and cutting losses quickly.
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* Results are not typical and will vary from person to person. Making money trading stocks takes time, dedication, and hard work. There are inherent risks involved with investing in the stock market, including the loss of your investment. Past performance in the market is not indicative of future results. Any investment is at your own risk. See Terms of Service here

The available research on day trading suggests that most active traders lose money. Fees and overtrading are major contributors to these losses.

A 2000 study called “Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors” evaluated 66,465 U.S. households that held stocks from 1991 to 1996. The households that traded most averaged an 11.4% annual return during a period where the overall market gained 17.9%. These lower returns were attributed to overconfidence.

A 2014 paper (revised 2019) titled “Learning Fast or Slow?” analyzed the complete transaction history of the Taiwan Stock Exchange between 1992 and 2006. It looked at the ongoing performance of day traders in this sample, and found that 97% of day traders can expect to lose money from trading, and more than 90% of all day trading volume can be traced to investors who predictably lose money. Additionally, it tied the behavior of gamblers and drivers who get more speeding tickets to overtrading, and cited studies showing that legalized gambling has an inverse effect on trading volume.

A 2019 research study (revised 2020) called “Day Trading for a Living?” observed 19,646 Brazilian futures contract traders who started day trading from 2013 to 2015, and recorded two years of their trading activity. The study authors found that 97% of traders with more than 300 days actively trading lost money, and only 1.1% earned more than the Brazilian minimum wage ($16 USD per day). They hypothesized that the greater returns shown in previous studies did not differentiate between frequent day traders and those who traded rarely, and that more frequent trading activity decreases the chance of profitability.

These studies show the wide variance of the available data on day trading profitability. One thing that seems clear from the research is that most day traders lose money .

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Citations for Disclaimer

Barber, Brad M. and Odean, Terrance, Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors. Available at SSRN: “Day Trading for a Living?”

Barber, Brad M. and Lee, Yi-Tsung and Liu, Yu-Jane and Odean, Terrance and Zhang, Ke, Learning Fast or Slow? (May 28, 2019). Forthcoming: Review of Asset Pricing Studies, Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=2535636”

Chague, Fernando and De-Losso, Rodrigo and Giovannetti, Bruno, Day Trading for a Living? (June 11, 2020). Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=3423101”