Back to top

Image: Bigstock

The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Baker Hughes Co, Matador Resources, EOG Resources, Diamondback and Devon Energy Corp

Read MoreHide Full Article

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – June 1, 2021 – 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: Baker Hughes Company (BKR - Free Report) , Matador Resources Company (MTDR - Free Report) , EOG Resources, Inc. (EOG - Free Report) , Diamondback Energy, Inc. (FANG - Free Report) and Devon Energy Corporation (DVN - Free Report) .

Here are highlights from Friday’s Analyst Blog:

4 Permian Explorers to Watch Closely on Crude Price Surge

The economies are now reopening, thereby calling for more oil production since the commodity is a prime source of fossil fuel that is used for transportation and power. The rising demand for crude is reflected in the increasing price of the commodity, compelling investors to keep an eye on oil companies.

Oil Price Rally

The price of West Texas Intermediate crude, trading at more than $66 per barrel mark, has improved drastically from the pandemic-hit April last year, when oil was in the negative territory. With coronavirus vaccines being rolled out at a massive scale, there have been increased signs that the economy is reopening. This is going to boost oil and fuel demand further.

Notably, strong economic data is mitigating investor concerns about possible Iranian oil supply, thereby backing the crude price rally. By strong economic data, it suggests that jobless claims have fallen to a new pandemic low and gross domestic product of the United States increased at a 6.4% annual rate in the March quarter – per the U.S. Commerce Department.

Explorers Returning to Shale Plays

With optimism on improving fuel demand picking up, oil drillers are gradually returning to shale plays. Per the weekly rig count data from Baker Hughes Co., it has been a clear sign since the beginning of this year that drillers are adding oil rigs. The data suggests that in the week through May 21, 2021, the count of oil drilling rigs in the United States was recorded at 356, depicting a rise from the tally of 275 as of the week ended Jan 8, 2021.

Investors should know that Permian, the most prolific basin in the United States, witnessed an oil rig tally of 230 for the week through May 21, recording a jump from the tally of 179 in the week through Jan 8, per Baker Hughes' data.

Permian Explorers in the Spotlight

With explorers and producers adding rigs to capitalize on the favorable crude pricing environment, it would be wise to focus on upstream players operating in the Permian. This is because, among all plays, Permian is likely to witness an uptick in production in June from May, per the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Per EIA data, Permian will probably produce 4,589 thousand barrels per day of oil in June, higher than May's production of 4,535 thousand barrels per day.  Almost all other resources, including Anadarko, Bakken, Eagle Ford and Niobrara, will likely deliver lower oil production in June as compared to May, per the EIA.

4 Stocks to Gain

Now, it seems to be an opportune moment for energy investors to consider stocks of explorers operating in the basin. This is because Permian explorers are probably best positioned to capitalize on rising oil prices with higher production. Here, we present one Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock and three Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) companies that are well positioned to gain. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Headquartered in Dallas, TX, Matador Resources has a strong footprint in the liquid-rich Delaware Basin's Wolfcamp and Bone Spring plays. The Zacks Rank #1 stock has witnessed upward earnings estimate revisions for 2021 and 2022, respectively, in the past seven days.

EOG Resources, headquartered in Houston, TX, has premium drilling locations in all prolific shale plays in the United States, including the Delaware basin, a sub-basin of the broader Permian. The company, with a Zacks Rank of 3, is likely to see earnings growth of 299.3% in 2021.

Headquartered in Midland, TX, Diamondback Energy is a pure-play Permian player with presence in more than 347,000 net acres in the Permian. The company has more than 12,300 gross horizontal locations, brightening its production outlook. Notably, the Zacks #3 Ranked stock has witnessed upward earnings estimate revisions for 2021 and 2022, respectively, in the past seven days.

Devon Energy Corp., headquartered in Oklahoma City, has a footprint across 400,000 net acres in the Delaware Basin. With multi-decade inventory of drilling sites, the company's production outlook seems bright. In the past 30 days, the stock, with a Zacks Rank of 3, has witnessed upward earnings estimate revisions for 2021 and 2022, respectively.

Zacks Names "Single Best Pick to Double"

From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all.

You know this company from its past glory days, but few would expect that it's poised for a monster turnaround. Fresh from a successful repositioning and flush with A-list celeb endorsements, it could rival or surpass other recent Zacks' Stocks Set to Double like Boston Beer Company which shot up +143.0% in a little more than 9 months and Nvidia which boomed +175.9% in one year.

Free: See Our Top Stock and 4 Runners Up >>

Media Contact

Zacks Investment Research

800-767-3771 ext. 9339

support@zacks.com                                      

https://www.zacks.com                                          

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

Published in