We recently published a list of Billionaire’s 15 Favorite Oil and Gas Stocks Right Now. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) stands against other billionaire’s favorite oil and gas stocks right now.

The oil and gas industry is a significant driver of the global economy, influencing industries, transportation, and geopolitical dynamics. However, the past year has been nothing short of a roller coaster for the sector, with high volatility coming from factors such as geopolitical tensions, natural disasters, supply chain disruptions, and a dampening demand due to a global economic slowdown.

READ ALSO: 11 Best Natural Gas Stocks To Buy Now

Brent crude prices have recently hit a 6-month low as US crude oil stockpiles posted a larger-than-expected build, coupled with worries about a looming return of more OPEC+ barrels to the market and President Trump’s tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China. The global oil and gas majors have already struggled with decreasing prices in 2024 and the recent decline has only added to their troubles. Things could get even worse, as the IEA expects Brent crude prices to fall further to $66 a barrel in 2026.

Meanwhile, as the US oil and gas production hits record highs, President Trump has made calls to “Drill, Baby, Drill” and pump those numbers up even higher, as he seeks to make the country self-sufficient in energy. However, not everyone seems to be on. Instead of continuously increasing supply and hence plunging prices even lower, the oil industry remains focused on achieving efficiency gains and maintaining capital discipline, while also rewarding loyal shareholders through dividends and share repurchase programs. According to a report by Janus Henderson, companies in the energy sector distributed over $49 billion in dividends during the third quarter of 2024, up from $32.2 billion three years ago.

However, the same cannot be said of the natural gas sector. US gas producers, which curbed production last year due to multi-year low prices, are now adding gas rigs and boosting production as the price has crossed the $4.6 mark this week. The slowing output in 2024, a booming LNG industry, and fast-depleting inventories during the coldest winter in years have driven gas prices up by over 150% over the last year.

Another significant growth driver for America’s natural gas industry is the ongoing artificial intelligence boom and the accompanying data centers, which consume 10 to 50 times the amount of energy per square foot of a typical commercial office building. These energy intensive facilities could consume as much as 9% of all energy generated in the US by 2030, and this energy needs to come from a relatively clean, flexible, and reliable source that is abundantly available in the form of natural gas. According to energy data provider Enverus, a total of 80 new gas power plants could be constructed in America by the end of the decade, adding about 46 GW of new capacity – 20% higher than the gas capacity additions in the last five years. Several gas majors are now even bypassing traditional utilities and building power plants to connect directly to data centers, a move that could reshape the industry in the years to come, if it pays off.

Methodology

To collect data for this article, we scanned Insider Monkey’s database of billionaires’ stock holdings and picked the top 15 companies operating in the oil and gas sector with the highest number of billionaire investors in Q4 of 2024.

At Insider Monkey we are obsessed with the stocks that hedge funds pile into. The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN)

Number of Billionaire Holders: 13

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) is a leading independent energy company engaged in finding and producing oil and natural gas, with operations focused onshore in the United States. It is among the best energy stocks according to billionaires.

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) ended 2024 with exceptionally strong results, especially after the integration of its Grayson Mill assets. The company reported a revenue of $4.4 billion, up 6.22% YoY and above market expectations by over $155.3 million. DVN’s EPS of $1.16 also beat estimates by $0.16. Moreover, the company’s oil production reached an all-time high of 398,000 barrels per day during the quarter, largely driven by the timing and productivity of its Eagle Ford wells. Its overall oil and gas production hit 848,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed) in Q4, topping prior estimates of 811,000 boed to 830,000 boed. The impressive performance has encouraged the company to raise its overall guidance for 2025 to 815,000 boed, including 383,000 barrels of oil per day.

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) maintains a strong balance sheet and its overall free cash flow for 2024 came in at $3 billion, of which it returned $2 billion to its shareholders. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, up 9.1% from its prior dividend of $0.22. For 2025, DVN is targeting up to a 70% cash return payout to shareholders from generated free cash flow at current strip pricing.

Overall, DVN ranks 13th on our list of billionaire’s favorite oil and gas stocks right now. While we acknowledge the potential for DVN to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than DVN but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.