Billionaires Love These Energy Stocks

Oil prices have rallied in recent weeks as OPEC successfully put aside its geopolitical differences and agreed to cut production. On the back of the decision, some bullish analysts think that a revival in the energy sector is due amid the growing demand around the globe. Bears, on the other hand, are not so sure. In this article, we will analyze several energy stocks in which the billionaires of the Wall Street are interested in.

We follow over 700 hedge funds and other institutional investors and by analyzing their quarterly 13F filings, we identify stocks that they are collectively bullish on and develop investment strategies based on this data. One strategy that outperformed the market over the last year involves selecting the 100 best-performing funds and identifying the 30 mid-cap stocks that they are collectively the most bullish on. Over the past year, this strategy generated returns of 18%, topping the 8% gain registered by S&P 500 ETFs.

Anadarko Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:APC)

Of the 64 billionaires we track, 10 were bullish on Anadarko Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:APC) as they amassed $1.73 billion worth of the company’s stock at the end of the third quarter. This shows a growing interest in the company because only 6 billionaires were long Anadarko Petroleum at the end of the second quarter. Several investment firms have upgraded Anadarko recently, including Credit Suisse, Guggenhei and UBS. The company missed consensus estimates for the third quarter as it posted a loss of $0.89 a share on $1.89 billion revenue, compared to the forecasts of $0.54 per share loss and $2.19 billion revenue. Andreas Halvorsen’s Viking Global owns 8.54 million shares of the company, as of the most recent 13F period.

Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD)

As of the end of the third quarter, 10 billionaires in our data were long Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD). The total value Pioneer Natural’s stock owned by these investors amounted to $1.03 billion. The Texas-based energy company reported third quarter EPS of $0.13, worse than the consensus estimate of $0.16. Despite the third quarter miss, the stock has gained 49% in value since the start of the year. At the end of the third quarter, a total of 72 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD)

On the next page, we will see the rest of the energy stocks that billionaires like.

Marathon Petroleum Corp (NYSE:MPC)

At the end of the September quarter, 10 billionaires tracked by Insider Monkey held $916.98 million worth of shares of Marathon Petroleum Corp (NYSE:MPC). Recently, Paul Singer’s Elliot Management wrote a letter to Marathon Petroleum’s board, urging the company to review its current structure and to consider a tax-free separation of the company into three separate businesses. Marathon Petroluem responded that while it agreed with the fund’s stance that there is an upside to the company’s valuation, the company is addressing/has addressed the issue as it took several “aggressive measures” such as moving some assets to its master-limited partnership MPLX. The company also feels that its integrated and diversified model delivers substantial value. Eric W. Mandelblatt’s Soroban Capital Partners reported owning 10.74 million shares of the company at the end of the third quarter.

Encana Corporation (NYSE:ECA)

Encana Corporation (NYSE:ECA) was owned by 9 billionaires at the end of the third quarter, compared to 5 billionaires a quarter earlier. A total of 37 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on the company at the end of the third quarter, more than 26 funds a quarter earlier. The company reported third quarter EPS of $0.04, crushing past the analysts’ forecast of per share loss of $0.04. Robert Pitts’ Steadfast Capital Management owns 86.82 million shares of the company. The stock went through the roof this year, gaining over 149% year-to-date

Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL)

9 billionaires out of 64 in our list were long Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) at the end of the third quarter. In the same period, a total of 56 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned $1.80 billion worth of the company’s shares. In the third quarter, Halliburton earned $0.01 a share on $3.83 billion in revenue, compared to expectations of a loss of $0.07 per share on $3.9 billion in revenue. Daniel S. Och’s OZ Management owns 4.73 million shares of Halliburton, as of the end of the third quarter.

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