Oil stocks might get a boost from the summer driving season, but Hess is a good bet to stay hot even when the weather turns cold.
With its heavy emphasis on exploration and a recent history of drilling successes, New York-based Hess could be one of the biggest beneficiaries among major oil companies of the nascent recovery in the price of crude oil and natural gas. The company has the equivalent of 1.43 billion barrels of energy reserves, 68% in oil and the rest in natural gas.
Overall, Hess devotes 80% of its capital spending to exploration and production. Other oil producers, such as industry giant ExxonMobil, might offer more stability, and smaller rivals such as Murphy Oil are growing faster. But Hess could enjoy the biggest pop, relative to its size, from an oil rebound.