Energy Stocks

Resource and commodity stocks in general should make up only a limited portion of your portfolio—say less than 20% for a conservative investor or as much as 30% for an aggressive investor. And as part of that segment, energy stocks could make up, say half of that total. The rest could be fertilizer stocks, mining stocks and so on.

Oil and gas stocks have been below-average performers lately, and many investors are tempted to get out of the industry altogether. However, the energy sector can play a crucial role in your portfolio as a hedge against inflation. The low inflation rates of the past couple of decades deserve some of the blame for the poor performance of the sector. However, energy stocks will likely rebound in years to come as the global economy recovers.

  1. Invest mainly in well-established companies;
  2. Spread your money out across most if not all of the five main economic sectors (Manufacturing & Industry; Resources & Commodities; Consumer; Finance; Utilities);
  3. Downplay or avoid stocks in the broker/media limelight.

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Energy Stocks Library Archives
CHEVRON CORP. $125 (New York symbol CVX; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares o/s: 1.9 billion; Market cap: $237.5 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.8; Divd. yield: 3.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.chevron.com) continues to sell some its less-important assets as part of a plan to focus on its main oil and gas operations.


The company is now close to selling its South African operations for $1 billion....

STANTEC INC. $33.72 (Toronto symbol STN; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (780-917-7288; www.stantec.com; Shares o/s: 113.9 million; Market cap: $3.9 billion; Divd. yield: 1.6%) sells consulting, project management, design and technology services....

DELPHI ENERGY $0.87 (Toronto symbol DEE; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (403-265-6171; www.delphienergy.ca; Shares outstanding: 185.5 million; Market cap: $157.7 million; No dividends paid) explores for, develops and produces oil and natural gas....

BIRCHCLIFF ENERGY $4.67 (Toronto symbol BIR; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (403-261-6401; www.birchcliffenergy.com; Shares outstanding: 263.0 million; Market cap: $1.3 billion; Dividend yield: 2.1%) explores for, develops and produces oil and gas, mainly in the Peace River Arch area of both Alberta and B.C....
Ottawa’s move to buy the existing Trans Mountain pipeline in order to build its controversial expansion is good news for these three resources companies. Additional capacity to ship crude oil and refined fuels from Alberta to Vancouver should make it easier for producers to service their customers.


For new buying, we prefer Cenovus and Teck over Encana....
ENCANA CORP. $16.71 (Toronto symbol ECA; Shares outstanding: 971.0 million; Market cap: $16.1 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 0.5%; www.encana.com) has four key properties: Montney (B.C.), Duvernay (Alberta), and Eagle Ford and Permian (both in Texas)....
PENGROWTH ENERGY $0.97 (Toronto symbol PGF; Shares outstanding: 547.4 million; Market cap: $539.4 million; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative; No dividends paid; www.pengrowth.com) produces oil and natural gas, mostly in Western Canada. This includes its Lindbergh oil sands project in the Cold Lake area of Alberta.


In addition to their primary listing on the
Toronto exchange, the company’s shares also trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), symbol PGH....
PEYTO EXPLORATION & DEVELOPMENT CORP. $10.59 (Toronto symbol PEY; Shares outstanding: 164.6 million; Market cap: $1.7 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 6.8%; www.peyto.com) produces and explores for natural gas and oil in Alberta....
CRESCENT POINT ENERGY $10.42 (Toronto symbol CPG; Shares outstanding: 545.8 million; Market cap: $5.7 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 3.5%; www.crescentpointenergy.com) shareholders rejected in early May a list of alternative directors proposed by Cation Capital Inc.


The Alberta-based activist investor owns just 0.3% of the energy producer....
PASON SYSTEMS $20.19 (Toronto symbol PSI; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (403-301-3400; www.pason.com; Shares outstanding: 85.1 million; Market cap: $1.7 billion; Dividend yield: 3.4%) serves drilling contractors for oil and gas firms in Canada, the U.S., Mexico and Argentina....