Jet fuel follows diesel higher as Hormuz squeeze hits 2 markets

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[1] Jet fuel is following diesel's price jump as the Hormuz supply shock hits the skies (https://www.marketwatch.com/story/jet-fuel-is ...)[2] Ukraine’s Refinery Strikes Add To A Global Diesel Squeeze (https://www.forbes.com/sites/guneyyildiz/2026 ...)

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Sep 22 2026, 20:33

Getty Realty buys 41 Refuel stores for $260.9 million

Getty Realty Corp. has added 41 convenience stores to its net lease portfolio in a $260.9 million transaction with Refuel Operating Company, a deal that installs the fuel retailer as the REIT's third-largest tenant at roughly 7.7% of annualized base rent. "We are excited to partner with Refuel on its first portfolio sale leaseback transaction and to further advance the relationship we have cultivated over the last several years," Christopher J. Constant, Getty's President and Chief Executive Officer, said. "Refuel is one of the leading operators in the convenience store sector, and its premium brand, growing platform, and high-quality real estate align well with Getty's underwriting criteria for convenience store acquisitions." The New York-based net lease REIT, which trades on the NYSE under GTY, simultaneously signed four long-term unitary net leases covering the portfolio. The properties split into 17 stores in South Carolina, 12 in North Carolina, seven in Texas and five in Mississippi, with each state's assets bundled under a single lease carrying a 20-year initial term, multiple renewal options and rent increases every five years. The sites average nearly 5,000 square feet and 2.5 acres, and include proprietary hot food programs or branded quick-service restaurants. Refuel, founded in 2008 and a First Reserve portfolio company since 2019, operates roughly 250 locations under the Refuel and Double Quick brands across South Carolina, North Carolina, Texas, Mississippi and Arkansas. It was already a Getty tenant at six convenience stores, five of which Getty financed through its development funding program as new-to-industry construction. The deal is the largest single piece of a year in which Getty has committed about $455.2 million to convenience and automotive retail assets at a 7.1% initial cash yield, including roughly $35.7 million of investment activity closed after June 30. Getty holds a committed pipeline of more than $125.0 million for development and acquisition at initial cash yields averaging 7.8%, above the blended rate on what it has already bought this year. ## Funding stack leans on forward equity and a new term loan Getty expects to fund the Refuel purchase on a leverage-neutral basis through three channels. It entered new forward sale agreements after June 30 for about 0.8 million shares at roughly $26.4 million in anticipated gross proceeds, bringing total shares subject to outstanding forward sales to about 6.6 million and anticipated gross proceeds to about $216.9 million. Getty plans to apply about $100.0 million of that toward Refuel. A second $100.0 million tranche comes from a new $200.0 million unsecured term loan, for which Getty has commitments from a group of existing lenders. The facility is expected to close in October 2026 and mature in October 2028, with three one-year extension options exercisable at the company's discretion subject to standard conditions. The remaining piece is dispositions: Getty has identified properties expected to generate at least $50.0 million in gross proceeds, after selling 13 properties year to date for $19.1 million at a 5.7% cap rate on stabilized assets. The structure matters because the acquisition yield sits above the cost of the capital raised to fund it. A 7.1% blended initial cash yield on the year's investments, and 7.8% on the pipeline, compares with a quarterly dividend of $0.485 per share — an annualized $1.94 — against a Sept. 22 close of $29.45, a yield of about 6.6%. Getty's 2026 adjusted funds from operations guidance stands at $2.52 to $2.54 per share, in line with the $2.53 FactSet consensus, after second-quarter AFFO of $0.62 matched estimates and rental revenue of $58.6 million edged past the $58.5 million consensus. Concentration is the trade-off. Refuel's 7.7% share of annualized base rent places it behind only Getty's two largest tenants, and the four unitary leases mean a single operator's credit now governs a meaningful slice of rent roll across four states. Getty's portfolio totals 1,269 freestanding properties in 46 states plus Washington, D.C., so the new stores represent about 3.2% of property count while contributing a larger share of rent — a function of the sites' size and format relative to the legacy automotive-service mix. ## Analysts already marked targets higher before the deal Sell-side positioning was constructive into the announcement. Bank of America raised its Getty price target to $38 from $37 on July 27, and RBC lifted its target to $36 from $35 on July 24 while keeping a Sector Perform rating. The consensus of eight analysts sits at Outperform with an average target of $36.43, implying about 23.6% upside from the last close. The stock slipped 0.07% to $29.45 on Sept. 22, is down 6.30% over five sessions and up 7.60% year to date. The read-through extends past Getty. Sale-leasebacks have become the default route for convenience store and fuel operators to monetize real estate without giving up store operations, and Refuel's decision to sell 41 sites while retaining the operating business follows the same logic that has driven similar portfolio transactions across the sector. For net lease REITs competing for the same assets, Getty's willingness to underwrite a 20-year unitary structure at a 7.1% blended yield sets a pricing reference for large-format convenience portfolios with foodservice components. Getty's next test comes with third-quarter results, when investors will see whether the forward equity settles as planned and whether the identified dispositions close at or above the $50.0 million target. The term loan is scheduled to close in October 2026, and the dividend goes ex on Sept. 24 with payment on Oct. 8. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

Sep 22 2026, 20:30

Boehly's Gulf-backed bid for Lukoil assets faces 3 approval gates

Todd Boehly has lined up US government support and Gulf investors with ties to the Trump family for a bid on Lukoil's international assets, opening a transaction that must clear US, European and Russian approval before any barrels change hands, the Financial Times reported Tuesday. "The buyer group is assembling political cover before it assembles capital," said Omar Tariq, an energy analyst covering Asia-Pacific resource flows. "That ordering tells you where the deal risk actually sits." Lukoil's overseas holdings span refining, retail fuel networks and upstream stakes across Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia. The Moscow-listed parent reported first-half profit up 50% year on year on Aug. 28, and its shares last changed hands at 3,911 rubles on the Micex, giving the company a market capitalization of about 32.66 billion rubles-equivalent, per MarketScreener data. Brent crude traded at $98.35 a barrel, down 1.60% on the day, while WTI sat at $89.62, down 2.83%. The consortium's structure is the story. Boehly, the Eldridge Industries co-founder who previously led a Chelsea Football Club acquisition, is pairing US institutional capital with Gulf money — a combination that gives the bid both Washington's blessing and the balance sheet to absorb assets that Western majors have spent three years exiting. Reuters said it could not immediately verify the FT report, and no deal value, payment structure or premium to any undisturbed price has been disclosed. ## Sanctions Are the Binding Constraint, Not Price Lukoil has been under US, UK and EU sanctions since 2022, and its international subsidiaries sit inside a web of restrictions that make any change of control a licensing question before it is a valuation question. A buyer must obtain an OFAC license or a general authorization covering the transfer, and European assets would separately require EU member-state approval — a process that has taken 12 to 18 months for comparable Russian-linked divestments since 2023. The US House passed a Russia sanctions bill targeting countries that buy Russian oil, adding a second layer of political risk to any transaction touching Moscow-linked barrels. India's Ministry of External Affairs said publicly that the bill's "potential implications for not just the bilateral relationship but also the international energy market have been very clearly articulated," the first time New Delhi has signaled the measure could strain ties with Washington. For a consortium whose Gulf partners trade heavily with both the US and Russia, that bill is a live variable rather than background noise. Kremlin reaction is the third gate. Russia has required presidential approval for disposals of strategic energy assets since 2022, and has repeatedly blocked or reversed foreign exits it deemed unfavorable. Lukoil itself has been hit operationally in the meantime: Ukrainian drone strikes halted processing at its NORSI refinery on Aug. 26 and at its Perm refinery after an Aug. 21 attack, and Moscow fuel stations began limiting sales on Aug. 19 amid shortages. ## Gulf Capital Keeps Buying Energy Assets The Gulf leg of the consortium fits a pattern that has run through 2026. Sovereign-wealth-linked capital has been reallocating into strategic energy assets as European and US buyers retreat from Russian-adjacent holdings, and Gulf funds have the mandate and the currency to hold assets through a multi-year sanctions cycle. That patience is precisely what a deal of this shape requires — a buyer willing to sit on refining and retail infrastructure while licensing works through Washington and Brussels. The comparison that matters is scale. Lukoil's international portfolio is a fraction of the roughly $200 billion in Russian energy assets that Western companies wrote down or sold at discounts after 2022, but it is the largest single block still in play. If the consortium closes, it resets the reference price for Russian-linked energy assets and gives Gulf capital a Western-sanctioned route into European refining. If it stalls at the licensing stage, the assets stay frozen and the discount widens further. For traders, the near-term read is narrower than the headline. Lukoil's Micex shares and Russian-linked energy equities are the instruments most exposed to headline risk on approval or rejection, while Brent and WTI are currently trading on supply and demand signals — Brent down 7.20% over five sessions — rather than on this transaction. The next hard checkpoint is whether OFAC issues a license or the consortium files formally; neither has been disclosed. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

Sep 22 2026, 20:15

Apple builds screenless Whoop rival as Garmin swings 4%

Apple is developing a screenless health and fitness wristband that would put it directly against Whoop, a prototype-stage project that has not been cleared for release and would not reach shelves before 2028 at the earliest. The plan has backing from Executive Chairman Tim Cook and services chief Eddy Cue, according to people familiar with the matter cited by Bloomberg on Sept. 22. Apple has spent several months exploring the category and is now building prototype hardware, the report said, describing the effort as a "technology investigation" — internal language for research that has not been committed to shipping. Prototypes consist of a thin fabric band with a sensor-equipped computing module and no display, a form factor that separates the device from the Apple Watch, which is built around a screen and bundles fitness tracking with apps and notifications. Data would flow to Apple's Health and Fitness apps on an iPhone. Whoop's wristbands run more than two weeks per charge without a display to drain; the Apple Watch typically needs charging close to daily. Apple's watch starts at $249. The disclosure moved rival wearables names before the effect faded. Garmin shares fell as much as 2.5% intraday before reversing to close up 1.6%, while Apple traded around $340 after an early pop gave way. The muted follow-through reflects the distance between a prototype and a product: no release decision has been made, and Apple has not disclosed pricing, sensor specifications, battery life or expected volumes. ## Whoop and Oura are racing to public markets first The competitive backdrop explains why Apple is looking at the category at all. Whoop carries a valuation of roughly $10 billion and is weighing an IPO, while smart-ring maker Oura filed for a listing this month. Both have built user bases in the millions on subscription health tracking, and Google entered the screenless segment with the Fitbit Air, a $99 band whose core features work without a subscription. Garmin has held the endurance and outdoor tracking market for years. Apple's own health franchise is being rebuilt around that simpler model. Jeff Williams, the former chief operating officer who oversaw the watch and health businesses, retired at the end of last year. Stan Ng, who ran marketing for the Apple Watch and health products, and Jay Blahnik, who led fitness strategy, have both left. Cue, who took over health late last year, has pushed the team to study Whoop and its peers and bring a narrower, health-first product philosophy into Apple's lineup. That shift is already visible in shipping products. The latest Apple Watch and a redesigned Health app added more advanced heart-rate tracking, a daily readiness score and an estimate of the user's physiological age from health data — features that mirror Whoop's core offering. Apple published a heart study in September arguing the Apple Watch Series 12 is the most accurate health wearable, a comparison that also highlighted how competitive the Whoop 5 tracker has become. The band sits inside a broader wearables push. Apple's Vision hardware group, which is developing the Vision Pro headset, is also working on the company's first smart glasses and camera-equipped AirPods, both targeted for 2027. A camera-equipped AI pendant that would have collected visual data for a new version of Siri has been postponed. Apple is also planning a larger Apple Watch redesign as early as late 2027, the first substantial overhaul since the Ultra model launched four years ago. ## The 2028 timeline caps the damage to incumbents For investors, the arithmetic matters more than the rumor. Apple's wearables, home and accessories segment generated roughly $40 billion in annual revenue in recent years, and a screenless band priced below the $249 Apple Watch entry point would be aimed at expanding that base rather than replacing it — a cheaper device with a two-week battery is a different sale than a $249 watch. The threat to incumbents is real but distant. Whoop's roughly $10 billion valuation and Oura's IPO filing both rest on subscription revenue that a $99 Google Fitbit Air already pressures; an Apple entry would compress pricing power further, but not before 2028 on the current timeline. Garmin's 2.5% intraday drop and subsequent 1.6% gain is the market's way of pricing a headline with no revenue attached. Apple, trading near $340, has a market capitalization above $3 trillion, which makes a single unlaunched accessory immaterial to the equity until a launch date is confirmed. The next signal to watch is whether Apple moves the project out of technology investigation and into a formal development program with a ship date. Until that happens, the screenless category belongs to Whoop, Oura, Garmin and Google. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.