For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – October 06, 2015 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include the Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI), Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM), Apache Corp. (APA), QEP Resources Inc. (QEP) and HollyFrontier Corp. (HFC).
Today, Zacks is promoting its ''Buy'' stock recommendations. Get #1Stock of the Day pick for free.
Here are highlights from Monday’s Analyst Blog:
Oil Up Your Portfolio with 3 Stocks That Soared
Energy stocks have been dead money this year, brutalized by the slide in oil prices. Most stocks have slipped big time – 30% or more – as the commodity has collapsed and industry profit margins have sagged.
Oil’s Horror Show
In June 2014, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were trading above $110 per barrel. Now it’s around $45 per barrel.
As is now widely recognized, the main culprit behind the plunge is a classic case of supply-demand mismatch. Surplus production remains an issue, particularly with the boom in American shale output. At the same time, weak global consumption is set to continue in the short- to medium term, thanks to Japan, Europe and now China. Finally, a strengthening dollar is holding back ‘black gold’ prices.
Rig Count Relief
It certainly has been a turbulent few days for oil futures, with plenty of ups and downs. But on Friday, the market decided that the way to go should be UP, as the U.S. rig count continued its steady, although slow decline.
Oil services firm Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI) said in its weekly rig count that U.S. oil producers idled twenty six more rigs over the past week, bringing the total to 614. This marks its 4th consecutive weekly decline. The oil rig count is now down 62% from a peak set a year ago and is now at its lowest level in more than five years.
Industry observers viewed the rig count data as an indicating a break in shale drilling activities in the world’s biggest oil consumer. This helped the New York-traded oil futures rise 80 cents (or 1.8%) to settle at $45.54 a barrel on Friday, up about 1.8% for day. Friday’s rally also helped the contract minimize its weekly loss to just 0.4%.
Supportive for Stocks
Last week, ‘The Energy Select Sector SPDR’ posted a jump of 2.37%. The broad-based Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 index gained just 1.73% and 0.99%, respectively, over the same period. All major oil stocks – including mega-caps like Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) – relocated in the green with gains of 5.21%, 7.85% and 12.45%, respectively.
A Rare Opportunity to Build a Position in Energy
There are investors who see oil’s brief rally as just the calm before the storm and decide to build or increase their position in oil-related companies. However, selecting stocks to buy could be a tricky proposition, especially with oil prices moving like a roller-coaster.
However, with the help of our Zacks Stocks Screener, one can locate stocks with green shoots. In particular, we have shortlisted 3 companies that have gone up an impressive 5% or more last week, and have a top Zacks Rank.
Apache Corp. (APA): Founded in 1954, Apache is one of the world's leading independent energy companies engaged in the exploration, development and production of natural gas, crude oil and natural gas liquids. Sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), the Houston, TX-based oil and gas finder – which jumped 14.3% in last week’s trading – has surprised earnings to the upside in each of the last four quarters. What’s more, Apache's recently undertaken restructuring initiatives and cost cutting measures should enable the company to better its earnings performance in the future.
QEP Resources Inc. (QEP): Another upstream player, Denver, CO-based QEP Resources looks for oil and gas in the Rockies, Williston Basin, Oklahoma, the Texas Panhandle, and Louisiana. The company’s diversified reserve base in multiple U.S. basins, focused investment in high-return areas and competitive cost structure helped it deliver positive surprises in 3 of the last 4 quarters with an impressive average beat of 76.23%. QEP Resources, which surged 13.9% last week, currently has a Zacks Rank #2.
HollyFrontier Corp. (HFC): Headquartered in Dallas, TX, HollyFrontier Corp. is an independent petroleum refiner and marketer, which manufactures gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel and other specialty products. The Zacks Rank #2 company, which was up 7.1% in the last 5 trading days, boasts of refining capacity is 443,000 Bbl/d plus a network of processing units spread over the Midwest. Continuing to benefit from the ‘crack spread’ of oil, quarterly earnings projections for HollyFrontier are on an upswing with the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the third quarter climbing 17 cents (or 12%) to $1.64 over the past month.
Bottom Line
While these stocks may not be breaking out to new highs, they certainly hold the potential to make investors standout gains even in these capricious times.
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >>
About Zacks Equity Research
Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term.
Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons.
Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today. Find out What is happening in the stock market today on zacks.com. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report BAKER-HUGHES (BHI): Free Stock Analysis Report EXXON MOBIL CRP (XOM): Free Stock Analysis Report APACHE CORP (APA): Free Stock Analysis Report QEP RESOURCES (QEP): Free Stock Analysis Report HOLLYFRONTIER (HFC): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
|