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Bet on 3 Energy Stocks Poised to Beat Q2 Earnings Estimates

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Companies belonging to the energy sector are set to kick start second-quarter earnings next week. Crude price has aided upstream operations in the June quarter and is likely to have boosted  the bottom line of several companies like Devon Energy Corp. (DVN - Free Report) , Halliburton Company (HAL - Free Report) and Schlumberger Limited (SLB - Free Report) .   

Q2 Oil Price High

The pricing scenario of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was considerably higher in the second quarter of this year compared to the year-ago period.  Per data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the monthly WTI crude spot prices for this year’s April, May and June were $101.78 per barrel, $109.55 per barrel and $114.84 per barrel, respectively. The commodity prices were higher than last year’s prices of $61.72 per barrel, $65.17 per barrel and $71.38 per barrel, respectively. The significant crude price improvement was primarily supported by the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Favorable Upstream Business

High oil price was favorable for exploration and production operations in the June quarter. The count of rigs in oil resources was considerably year-over-year higher in the second quarter, confirming heightened upstream activities. With higher exploration operations, demand for oilfield services was promising since oilfield service firms help upstream companies efficiently set up oil wells.

Per Zacks Earnings Trends, in the June quarter, the Energy sector will likely report earnings of $52.2 billion, skyrocketing from only $17.9 billion in a year-ago quarter. Although the broader business environment was promising, that doesn’t mean that all energy players have earnings beat potential. With several energy firms thronging the investment space, it is by no means an easy task for investors to arrive at stocks that have the potential to deliver better-than-expected earnings. While it is impossible to be sure about such outperformers, our proprietary methodology makes it fairly simple.

Our research shows that for stocks with the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold), the chance of a positive earnings surprise is as high as 70%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Earnings ESP is our proprietary methodology for determining stocks that have the best chances to surprise with their next earnings announcement. It is the percentage difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

3 Stocks in the Spotlight

Devon Energy is scheduled to report second-quarter earnings on Aug 1, 2022. The well-known oil and gas producer in the United States, with a strong footprint in the prolific Delaware Basin, has an Earnings ESP of +8.14% and a Zacks Rank #2. High oil price is likely to have aided Devon Energy's disciplined cash-return business model in the June quarter.

DVN beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters, the earnings surprise being 13.4%, on average.You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Halliburton Company is scheduled to report second-quarter earnings on Jul 19, 2022. HAL, the leading provider of products and services, has a Zacks Rank of 2 and an Earnings ESP of +2.73%. High demand for oilfield services is likely to have aided Halliburton in the June quarter.

Halliburton beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the last four reported quarters, the earnings surprise being 6.02%, on average.

Schlumberger Limited is scheduled to report second-quarter earnings on Jul 22, 2022. SLB, the leading oilfield service player, has a Zacks Rank of 2 and an Earnings ESP of +2.10%. High demand for oilfield services is likely to have aided Schlumberger in the June quarter.

Schlumberger beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four reported quarters, the earnings surprise being 6.7%, on average.


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