Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now

Good news! According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Americans had to spend only 4% of their pre-tax income on gasoline for their cars in 2012 -- a sum that hasn't increased since seven years ago.

Horrible news! According to the same U.S. Energy Information Administration, Americans had to spend a whopping 4% of their pre-tax income on gasoline for their cars in 2012 -- which works out to $2,912. That's the most dollars Americans have had to spend on gas at any time in the past 30 years.

Source: US EIA.

So ... which is it? Is this revelation from the EIA good news or bad news? Obviously, it depends a bit on how you look at it (and on which qualifiers you put inside the parentheses). For example, one way to put the EIA's figures in a positive light is that, if the dollars spent go up, but the percentage of income those dollars represent stays flat ... logically, this must mean people are earning more dollars from their jobs. So even if it doesn't feel like it for many of us, apparently, wages have gone up!

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Halcon Resources Corp (HK)

Halcon Resources Corporation (Halcon Resources), incorporated on February 5, 2004, is an independent energy company focused on the acquisition, production, exploration and development of onshore liquids-rich oil and natural gas assets in the United States. The Company has oil and natural gas reserves located primarily in Texas, North Dakota, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Montana. On August 1, 2012, the Company acquired GeoResources by merger. On December 6, 2012, the Company completed the acquisition of entities owning approximately 81,000 net acres prospective for the Bakken / Three Forks formations primarily located in Williams, Mountrail, McKenzie and Dunn Counties, North Dakota (the Williston Basin Assets), from Petro-Hunt, L.L.C. and Pillar Energy, LLC (the Petro-Hunt parties). As of December 31, 2012, the Company has working interests in approximately 128,000 net acres prospective for the Bakken / Three Forks formations in North Dakota and Montana.

The Company�� Woodbine / Eagle Ford acreage is prospective for the Woodbine, Eagle Ford and other formations, with targeted depths ranging anywhere from 7,000 feet to 10,400 feet. As of December 31, 2012, The Company has approximately 198,000 net acres leased or under contract primarily in Leon, Madison, Grimes, Brazos, and Polk Counties, Texas. The Company is the operator and has a 100% working interest in more than 12,000 net acres in Wichita and Wilbarger Counties, Texas that it is actively water flooding in shallow Cisco aged Pennsylvania sandstone and limestone reservoirs. As of December 31, 2012, the Company produced 484 million barrels of oil equivalent from approximately 700 active producing wells and approximately 230 active water injection wells.

The Company�� position in the La Copita Field covers 3,720 gross acres and 2,829 net acres in Starr County, Texas. As of December 31, 2012, the Company�� average net daily production was 623 barrels of oil equivalent per day. The Company operates 100% of this production a! nd its working interest ranges from 75% to 100%. The Company has various other oil and natural gas properties with varying working interests located across the United States, including the Austin Chalk Trend and Eagle Ford Shale in Texas, the Fitts-Allen Fields in Central Oklahoma, and various other areas across South Louisiana, Montana, North Dakota, New Mexico, and West Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  One energy player that insiders are active in here is Halcon Resources (HK), which is engaged in the acquisition, development, exploitation, exploration and production of oil and natural gas properties. Insiders are buying this stock into notable weakness, since shares are off by 22% so far in 2013.

  Halcon Resources has a market cap of $1.99 billion and an enterprise value of $4.71 billion. This stock trades at a premium valuation, with a trailing price-to-earnings of 112.50 and a forward price-to-earnings of 12.56. Its estimated growth rate for this year is 900%, and for next year it's pegged at 79.2%. This is not a cash-rich company, since the total cash position on its balance sheet is $3.06 million and its total debt is $2.71 billion.

  A director just bought 200,000 shares, or about $1.02 million worth of stock, at $5.10 per share. A beneficial owner also just bought 5.2 million shares, or about $26.44 million worth of stock, at $5.10 per share.

  From a technical perspective, HK is currently trending below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which is bearish. This stock has been downtrending badly for the last six months, with shares moving lower from its high of $8.12 to its recent low of $4.92 a share. During that downtrend, shares of HK have been making mostly lower highs and lower lows, which is bearish technical price action. That said, this stock has started to find some buying interest off some previous support areas at $4.92 to $5.10 a share.

  If you're bullish on HK, then look for long-biased trades as long as this stock is trending above some key near-term support levels at $5.10 to $4.92 and then once it breaks out back above its 50-day at $5.67 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above that level with volume that hits near or above its three-month average volume of 5.14 million shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then HK will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $6.11 to $6.54 a share. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give HK a chance to tag $6.75 to $6.84 a share.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: IHS Inc. (IHS)

IHS Inc. (IHS), incorporated on May 5, 1994, is a source of information and insight in areas, such as energy and power; design and supply chain; defense, risk, and security; environment, health and safety (EHS) and sustainability; country and industry forecasting, and commodities, pricing, and cost. The Company is organized by geographies into three business segments: Americas, which includes the United States, Canada, and Latin America; EMEA, which includes Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and APAC (Asia Pacific). IHS sources data and transforms it into information and insight that businesses, Governments, and others use every day to make decisions. Its product development teams have also created Web services and application interfaces. These services allow its customers to integrate the Company�� information with other data, business processes and applications (computer-aided design, enterprise resource planning, supply chain management, and product data/lifecycle management). The Company develops its offerings based on its customers' workflows, and it sells and delivers them into the industries in which IHS�� customers operate. As of November 30, 2011, HIS focused on five customer workflows: strategy, planning, and analysis; energy technical; product engineering; supply chain, and EHS & sustainability. As of November 30, 2011, it was focused on six verticals: energy and natural resources; Government, defense and security; chemicals; transportation; manufacturing, and technology, media, and telecommunications. In March 2012, the Company acquired Displaybank, a global authority in market research and consulting for the display industry; the Computer Assisted Product Selection (CAPSTM) electronic components database and tools business, including CAPS Expert, from PartMiner Worldwide, and the digital oil and gas pipeline and infrastructure information business from Hild Technology Services. In March 2012, the Company acquired IMS Research. In March 2012, the Company acquired BDW Automotive GmbH. I! n May 2012, it acquired Xedar Corporation, a developer and provider of geospatial information products and services. In July 2012, the Company acquired CyberRegs business from Citation Technologies, Inc. In July 2012, the Company acquired GlobalSpec, Inc. On April 16, 2011, IHS acquired ODS-Petrodata (Holdings) Ltd. ODS-Petrodata is a provider of data, information, and market intelligence to the offshore energy industry. On April 26, 2011, it acquired Dyadem International, Ltd. (Dyadem). Dyadem offers operational risk management and quality risk management solutions. On May 2, 2011, the Company acquired Chemical Market Associates, Inc. (CMAI). CMAI is a leading provider of market and business advisory services for the worldwide petrochemical, specialty chemicals, fertilizer, plastics, fibers, and chlor-alkali industries. On August 10, 2011, the Company acquired Seismic Micro-Technology (SMT). SMT offers Windows-based exploration and production software, and its solutions are used by geoscientists worldwide to evaluate potential reservoirs and plan field development. On November 10, 2011, it acquired Purvin & Gertz. Purvin & Gertz is a global advisory and market research firm that provides technical, commercial, and strategic advice to international clients in the petroleum refining, natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil and petrochemical industries. Energy and Power IHS covers the technical and economic spectrum of energy and power. Detailed records and forecasts on oil, gas and coal supplies, combined with insights on traditional and emerging energy markets, help enable its customers to make decisions. Its offerings include production information on more than 90 % of the world's oil and gas production in more than 100 countries; oil and gas well data that includes geological information on more than four million current and historic wells worldwide; energy activity data that includes current and future seismic, drilling and development activities in more than 180 countries and 335 hydrocarbon-producing regions worldwide; information and research to develop unconventional hydrocarbon resources-shale gas, coal bed methane and heavy oil; knowledge of energy markets, strategies, industry trends, and companies; information and research summits, such as IHS CERAWeek and the IHS Herold Pacesetters Energy Conference, which offer decision makers the opportunity to interact with its experts, and critical information about analysis of coal, nuclear and renewables, including wind, solar, and hydro power. The Company competes with DrillingInfo, Inc., TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Company, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, Accenture, Deloitte, Wood Mackenzie, Ltd., Schlumberger Limited, Halliburton, LMKR and Paradigm Ltd. Design and Supply Chain IHS Design and Supply Chain solutions provide information for customers that allow them to manage a product from conception to research and development to production, maintenance and disposal. It also provides companies access to specifications and standards. The Company�� offerings include market and technology research and analysis; standards management solutions, including more than 370 commercial and military standards and specification publishing organizations; advanced product design and process engineering; strategic product content and supply chain management; environmentally compliant product design; counterfeit part risk mitigation; product performance and cost optimization, and indirect parts and maintenance, repair, and operations logistics, inventory and cash flow optimization tables, including wind, solar, and hydro power. The Company competes with SAI Global and Thomson Reuters Corporation. Defense, Risk and Security IHS delivers open source intelligence in the areas of global defense, risk, and security, including maritime domain awareness. IHS offers open source intelligence solutions for military planners, national security analysts, and defense and maritime industry strategy and planning professionals. The Company�� offerings include military and national security assessments; defense equipment and technology information; defense budgets and procurement forecasting; defense industry trends and analysis; terrorism and insurgency analysis; global commercial ship identification and specifications; live tracking of commercial ship movements; shipping and shipbuilding markets and forecasts, and ports and port security information. The Company competes with McGraw-Hill, Gannett, Forecast International and Control Risks Group. EHS and Sustainability IHS EHS and Sustainability solutions support critical decisions around environmental, health and safety, operational risk, greenhouse gas and energy, product stewardship and corporate responsibility. The Company�� offerings include global and local software implementations; material compliance and lifecycle information content; strategic planning services in greenhouse gas management and cap-and-trade; compliance and verification expertise for local, regional, national, and international EHS and sustainability management system responsibilities, and risk management assessment across a range of industries. The Company competes with SAP and Verisk. Country and Industry Forecasting IHS delivers detailed forecasts and analysis of economic conditions within political, economic, legal, tax, operational, and security environments worldwide. Additionally, IHS provides forecasts, market-sizing, and risk assessments for a number of industries worldwide, including aerospace and defense, agriculture, automotive, chemicals, construction, consumer and retail, energy, finance, government, healthcare and pharmaceutical, military and security, mining and metals, commerce and transport, and telecommunications. Its offerings include in-depth analysis of the business conditions, economic prospects, and risks in more than 200 countries and more than 170 industries; security risk analysis and daily updates on both Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and sovereign risk ratings in more than 200 countries; event-driven updates of its risk analysis and ratings; short-, medium- and long-term forecasts for business planning and decision making; historical information since 1970; Deep market intelligence for the automotive, agriculture, chemicals, construction, consumer goods, commerce and transport, energy, financial, healthcare and pharmaceutical, telecommunications, and steel industries; and scenario explorations examining alternative outcomes to the questions impacting global business. The Company competes with Economist Intelligence Unit and Moody's Corporation. Commodities, Pricing and Cost IHS offers information, forecasts, and analysis to help its customers understand the how, when, and what of commodity prices and labor costs. IHS analysts monitor and forecast more than 1,300 global price, wage, and manufacturing costs across the regions for sectors, including energy products, chemicals, steel, nonferrous metals, industrial machinery and equipment, electronic components, paper and packaging, transportation, and building materials. Its offerings include analysis and forecasts for more than 1,300 global price, wage, and manufacturing costs; market intelligence of drivers, assumptions, and risks relating to commodity and service prices; cost and price data with actionable insights; forecasts covering global spot market prices, wages, and material costs; advisory forums to assist in monitoring, forecasting, and managing power and energy portfolio project costs, and consulting capabilities that enable clients to source materials. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rebecca Lipman]

   Provides critical information and insight products and services. Market cap of $5.53B. EPS growth (5-year CAGR) at 22%. According to Morgan Stanley: "Almost 80% of the business is subscription-based, providing high revenue visibility. Customers operate their businesses more effectively with the data and analytics that IHS supplies, and the company has vast databases that would likely be cost-prohibitive and extremely difficult for competitors to reconstruct."

Top 5 Clean Energy Companies To Invest In Right Now: PetroChina Company Limited(PTR)

PetroChina Company Limited produces and distributes oil and gas in the People?s Republic of China. It operates in four segments: Exploration and Production, Refining and Chemicals, Marketing, and Natural Gas and Pipeline. The Exploration and Production segment explores, develops, produces, and markets crude oil and natural gas, oilsands, and coalbed methane. As of December 31, 2010, it had 11,278 million barrels of proved reserves of crude oil; and 65,503 billion cubic feet of proved reserves of natural gas. The Refining and Chemicals segment engages in the refining of crude oil and petroleum products; and production and marketing of petrochemical products, derivative petrochemical products, and other chemical products. This segment?s product line comprises processed crude oil, gasoline, kerosene, diesel, ethylene, synthetic resins, synthetic fiber materials, polymers, synthetic rubber, and urea. The Marketing segment involves in the marketing of refined products and tradi ng businesses. It operated 17,996 service stations. The Natural Gas and Pipeline segment engages in the transmission of natural gas, crude oil, and refined products; and the sale of natural gas. It had a total length of 56,840 kilometers (km) of oil and gas pipelines, including 32,801 km of natural gas pipelines, 14,782 km of crude oil pipelines, and 9,257 km of refined product pipelines. The company was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People?s Republic of China. PetroChina Company Limited is a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Smith]  

  With a market capitalization of $260 billion, PetroChina is at the top of our list. The company has a regular dividend policy and last year's dividend yield was 3%. Its global competitors, such Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A), British Petrolum (BP), Chevron Corporation (CVX) and Exxon Mobil (XOM), are competing fiercely. Meanwhile, PetroChina has an almost monopolistic position in China. In the last 10 years, the stock price increased 10-fold, from $15 in 2001 to $150 in 2010. That's a 1000% return within the last 10 years excluding dividends.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Cliffs Natural Resources Inc.(CLF)

Cliffs Natural Resources Inc., a mining and natural resources company, produces iron ore pellets, lump and fines iron ore, and metallurgical coal products. The company operates six iron ore mines in Michigan, Minnesota, and eastern Canada; two iron ore mining complexes in Western Australia; five metallurgical coal mines located in West Virginia and Alabama; and one thermal coal mine located in West Virginia. It also owns a 45% economic interest in a coking and thermal coal mine located in Queensland, Australia; and a 30% interest in Amapa, a Brazilian iron ore project in Latin America, as well as chromite properties in Ontario, Canada. The company, formerly known as Cleveland-Cliffs Inc, was founded in 1847 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Victor Mora]

  Cliffs Natural Resources provides essential materials to companies participating in a multitude of industries worldwide. The stock has been on a steady decline over the last several years but a recent positive earnings report may possibly fuel a move higher. Earnings and revenue figures have decreased over most of the last four quarters which has not made investors too happy. Relative to its peers and sector, Cliffs Natural Resources has been a year-to-date underperformer. WAIT AND SEE what Cliffs Natural Resources does this coming quarter.

• [By Dan Moskowitz]

  It�� impossible to predict stocks with 100 percent accuracy. With that said, based on the current economic environment, downside risk for Cliffs Natural Resources greatly outweighs upside potential. Vale (NYSE:VALE) and BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP) are lower-cost producers that are likely to hold up better if the broader market suffers a steep market correction. This situation already occurred in 2008. However, none of these companies are safe plays if the market falters.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Renesola Ltd.(SOL)

ReneSola Ltd, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of solar wafers and solar power products. It offers virgin polysilicons, monocrystalline and multicrystalline solar wafers, and photovoltaic cells and modules. The company also provides cell and module processing services. Its products are used in a range of residential, commercial, industrial, and other solar power generation systems. The company sells its solar wafers primarily to solar cell and module manufacturers. It principally operates in Mainland China, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea, India, Australia, Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium, France, the Czech Republic, and the United States. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in Jiashan, the People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Martin]

  Renesola Ltd.(NYSE: SOL) closing price in the stock market Tuesday, Jan. 3, was $1.61. SOL is trading -6.98% below its 50 day moving average and -45.69% below its 200 day moving average. SOL is -87.85% below its 52-week high of $13.25 and 11.03% above its 52-week low of $1.45. SOL‘s PE ratio is 1.56 and its market cap is $139.77M.

  Renesola Ltd. engages in the manufacture and sale of solar wafers and solar power products together with its subsidiaries. SOL offers virgin polysilicons, monocrystalline and multicrystalline solar wafers, and photovoltaic cells and modules.

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  
  

  One under-$10 name that's starting to move within range of triggering a big breakout trade is ReneSola (SOL), a manufacturer of solar wafers and producer of solar power products based in China. This stock has been on fire so far in 2013, with shares up sharply by 183%.

  If you take a look at the chart for ReneSola, you'll notice that this stock has been uptrending very strong for the last four months and change, with shares soaring higher from its low of $1.25 to its recent high of $4.85 a share. During that uptrend, shares of SOL have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. Shares of SOL have pulled back a bit during the last few weeks, with the stock coming off that high of $4.85 to its recent low of $3.52 a share. This stock has now started to bounce off that $3.52 low and it's quickly moving within range of triggering a big breakout trade.

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in SOL if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $4.25 to $4.50 a share and then once it clears its 52-week high at $4.85 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 2.09 million shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then SOL will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $7 to $8 a share.

  Traders can look to buy SOL off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below its 50-day moving average of $3.31 a share. One can also buy SOL off strength once it takes out those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: BP p.l.c.(BP)

BP p.l.c. provides fuel for transportation, energy for heat and light, retail services, and petrochemicals products. Its Exploration and Production segment engages in the oil and natural gas exploration, field development, and production; midstream transportation, and storage and processing; and marketing and trading of natural gas, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), and power and natural gas liquids (NGL). This segment has exploration and production activities in Angola, Azerbaijan, Canada, Egypt, Norway, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as in Asia, Australasia, South America, North Africa, and the Middle East. This segment also owns and manages crude oil and natural gas pipelines; processing facilities and export terminals; and LNG processing and transportation, as well as NGL extraction facilities. BP p.l.c. has interests in the Trans-Alaska pipeline system, the Forties pipeline system, the Central Area transmission sys tem pipeline, the South Caucasus Pipeline, and Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, as well as in LNG plants located in Trinidad, Indonesia, and Australia. The company?s Refining and Marketing segment involves in the supply and trading, refining, manufacturing, marketing, and transportation of crude oil, petroleum, and petrochemicals products and related services to wholesale and retail customers primarily under the BP, Castrol, ARCO, and Aral brands. Its Other Businesses and Corporate segment produces and markets rolled aluminum products, as well as generates energy through wind, solar, biofuels, hydrogen, and carbon capture and storage sources; and engages in shipping activities. The company was founded in 1889 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rahemtulla]

  Among the stocks that Bolton favors are Spain's Telefonica (TEF), which has a 7% 2009 yield and 3.8 times dividend cover, and BP, the British oil producer, which has a 6.9% yield and 2.8 times cover. Falling oil prices are an issue for BP, but he thinks it will try to avoid a dividend cut, owing to bad memories of a prior cut in the 1990s.

• [By Victor Mora]

  BP is a provider of essential oil and gas products and services to companies and consumers operating in a wide range of industries around the world. The stock has been in recovery mode over the last few years after suffering heavy selling in 2010 because of the oil spill disaster. Over the last four quarters, earnings and revenue figures have been mixed for the company, regardless, investors have been optimistic about the company. Relative to its peers and sector, BP has been an average performer year-to-date. WAIT AND SEE what BP does in coming quarters.

• [By Dan Moskowitz]

  As long as the broader market holds, BP should perform well going forward. If litigation costs exceed expectations, it might lead to a drop in the stock price, but that would only be temporary. Investors would then look at it as something that�� now out of the way, which is always a positive.

• [By Victor Mora]

  BP provides essential energy products to consumers and a wide array of companies that operate in different industries around the world. The stock has suffered in recent times due to the negative press it has experienced from the oil leak incident. However, it is now trying to establish a value range. The two most recent earnings and revenue figures have pleased investors. Relative to its peers and sector, BP has been an average year-to-date performer. WAIT AND SEE what BP does this coming earnings report.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Whitehaven Coal Ltd (WHITF)

Whitehaven Coal Limited (Whitehaven) is engaged in the development and operation of coal mines in New South Wales. During the fiscal year ended 30 June 2012 (fiscal 2012), Whitehaven Coal Limited and its controlled entities continued development at the Narrabri underground mine. The Company operates in two segments: Open Cut Operations and Underground Operations. The Company�� Gunnedah operations include the Tarrawonga (70% owned by Whitehaven), Rocglen (100% owned by Whitehaven), and Sunnyside (100% owned by Whitehaven) open cut mines and the Gunnedah coal handling and preparation plant and train load out facility (CHPP��(100% owned by Whitehaven). The Werris Creek mine is 100% owned by Whitehaven. During fiscal 2012, the Company produced 4.28 million tons per annum of saleable coal. On May 1, 2012, the Company acquired Boardwalk Resources Limited. On May 2, 2012, the Company acquired Aston Resources Limited. On June 20, 2012, it acquired Coalworks Limited. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jim Jubak]

  OK, so First Quantum Minerals (FQVLF) is a bit of a gamble. But the company, even without Inmet Mining (IEMMF), is a major miner of copper, gold and nickel, and its shares are up 15.6% in the past 12 months as of Dec. 18. My last three stocks on this list, on the other hand, are hated.

  Which, of course, means that they've got tremendous upside if the market simply moves from "hated" to "despised." My first pick is Australian coal producer Whitehaven Coal (WHITF). The only thing more hated than a coal stock -- on falling coal prices and falling demand from everywhere, but especially China -- is an Australian coal stock, to which you can add rising production costs to the list of woes.

  Whitehaven Coal, which owns seven mines (and important railroad infrastructure) in New South Wales, freaked out the market in October, when it said that if coal prices stayed at current low levels, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) would come in at just $50 millionAustralian (that's about $52.4 million in U.S. dollars) for 2013. That was a shock, since the analyst consensus for 2013 EBITDA was then at A$185 million. Since then, though, prices of Australian thermal coal have shown signs of climbing off the floor with reports of increased growth from China. Coal still sells for 27% less than it did a year ago, but the Nov. 30 price of $83.01 per metric ton is an improvement from $81.85 on Oct. 31.

  Whitehaven shares posted a 26.6% gain from a Nov. 16 low through Dec. 19, but they are still well below the highest price of the year.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Atlas Resource Partners LP (ARP)

Atlas Resource Partners, L.P. (Atlas Resource Partners), incorporated on October 13, 2011, is an independent developer and producer of natural gas, crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGL), with operations in basins across the United States. The Company is a sponsor and manager of investment partnerships, in which it co-invests, to finance a portion of its natural gas and oil production activities. During the year ended December 31, 2012, its average daily net production was approximately 77.2 million cubic feet equivalent. On December 20, 2012, it completed the acquisition of DTE Gas Resources, LLC from DTE Energy Company. On September 24, 2012, the Company acquired Equal Energy, Ltd.�� (Equal) remaining 50% interest in approximately 8,500 net undeveloped acres included in the joint venture. On July 26, 2012, it completed the acquisition of Titan Operating, L.L.C. On April 30, 2012, it acquired certain oil and natural gas assets from Carrizo Oil & Gas, Inc. In April 2012, it acquired a 50% interest in approximately 14,500 net undeveloped acres in the oil and NGL area of the Mississippi Lime play in northwestern Oklahoma.

Through December 31, 2012, the Company owned production positions in the areas of the Barnett Shale and Marble Falls play in the Fort Worth Basin in northern Texas; the Appalachia basin, including the Marcellus Shale and the Utica Shale; the Mississippi Lime and Hunton plays in northwestern Oklahoma, and the Chattanooga Shale in northeastern Tennessee, the Niobrara Shale in northeastern Colorado, the New Albany Shale in southwestern Indiana and the Antrim Shale in Michigan. During 2012, the Company had ownership interests in over 525 wells in the Barnett Shale and Marble Falls play and 569.3 billion cubic feet equivalent of total proved reserves with average daily production of 31.9 million cubic feet equivalent. During 2012, the Company had ownership interests in over 10,200 wells in the Appalachian basin, including approximately 270 wells in the Marcellus Shale and 1! 12.6 billion cubic feet equivalent of total proved reserves with average daily production of 35.6 million cubic feet equivalent. During 2012, it owned 21 billion cubic feet equivalent of total proved reserves with average daily production of 1.9 million cubic feet equivalent in the Mississippi Lime and Hunton plays in northwestern Oklahoma. During 2012, the Company had average daily production of 7.8 million cubic feet equivalent in the Chattanooga Shale in northeastern Tennessee, the Niobrara Shale in northeastern Colorado, the New Albany Shale in southwestern Indiana, and the Antrim Shale in Michigan.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: EcoloCap Solutions Inc (ECOS)

EcoloCap Solutions Inc. (EcoloCap), incorporated on March 18, 2004, is a development stage company. The Company is an integrated network of environmentally focused technology companies that design, develop, manufacture and sell cleaner alternative energy products.

The Company through its subsidiary Micro Bubble Technologies Inc. (MBT), developed and manufactures M-Fuel. The Company also developed the Carbon Nano Tube Battery (CNT-Battery), and the Nano Li- Battery both recyclable, rechargeable batteries. MBT has also developed a process that blends non-miscible liquids (oil and water) on a submicron level in order to create a non-emulsified fuel product that it calls EM-Fuel.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Contango Oil & Gas Co (MCF)

Contango Oil & Gas Company (Contango) is an independent natural gas and oil company. The Company�� core business is to explore, develop, produce and acquire natural gas and oil properties onshore and offshore in the Gulf of Mexico in water-depths of less than 300 feet. Contango Operators, Inc. (COI), its wholly owned subsidiary, acts as operator on its properties.

Offshore Gulf of Mexico Activities

Contango, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, COI and its partially owned affiliate, Republic Exploration LLC (REX), conducts exploration activities in the Gulf of Mexico. COI drills, and operates its wells in the Gulf of Mexico, as well as attends lease sales and acquires leasehold acreage. As of August 24, 2012, the Company's offshore production was approximately 83.5 million cubic feet equivalent per day, net to Contango, which consists of seven federal and five state of Louisiana wells in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico. These 12 operated wells produce through the four platforms: Eugene Island 24 Platform, Eugene Island 11 Platform, Ship Shoal 263 Platform, Vermilion 170 Platform and Other Activities.

This third-party owned and operated production platform at Eugene Island 24 was designed with a capacity of 100 million cubic feet per day and 3,000 barrels of oil per day. This platform services production from the Company�� Dutch #1, #2 and #3 federal wells. From this platform, the gas flows through an American Midstream pipeline into a third-party owned and operated on-shore processing facility at Burns Point, Louisiana, and the condensate flows through an ExxonMobil pipeline to on-shore markets and multiple refineries. As of August 24, 2012, it was producing approximately 22.5 million cubic feet equivalent per day, net to Contango, from this platform. The Company finished laying six inches auxiliary flowlines from the Dutch #1, #2, and #3 wells to its Eugene Island 11 Platform and is in the process of redirecting production from the Eugene Island 24! Platform to the Eugene Island 11 Platform.

The Company�� Company-owned and operated platform at Eugene Island 11 was designed with a capacity of 500 million cubic feet equivalent per day and 6,000 barrels of oil per day. These platforms service production from the Company�� five Mary Rose wells, which are all located in state of Louisiana waters, as well as its Dutch #4 and Dutch #5 wells, which are both located in federal waters. From these platforms, it can flow its gas to an American Midstream pipeline through its eight inches pipeline and from there to a third-party owned and operated on-shore processing facility at Burns Point, Louisiana. It can flow its condensate through an ExxonMobil pipeline to on-shore markets and multiple refineries.

The Company�� gas and condensate can flow to its Eugene Island 63 auxiliary platform through its 20 inches pipeline, which has been designed with a capacity of 330 million cubic feet equivalent per day and 6,000 barrels of oil per day, and from there to third-party owned and operated on-shore processing facilities near Patterson, Louisiana, through an ANR pipeline. As of August 24, 2012, it was producing approximately 44.6 million cubic feet equivalent per day, net to Contango, from this platform.

The Company�� owned and operated platform at Ship Shoal 263 was designed with a capacity of 40 million cubic feet equivalent per day and 5,000 barrels of oil per day. This platform services natural gas and condensate production from our Nautilus well, which flows through the Transcontinental Gas Pipeline to onshore processing plants. As of August 24, 2012, it was producing approximately 3.0 million cubic feet equivalent per day, net to Contango, from this platform. As of June 30, 2012, the Company owed a 100% working interest and 80% net revenue interest in this well and platform.

The Company�� owned and operated platform at Vermilion 170 was designed with a capacity of 60 million cubic feet equivalent per ! day and 2! ,000 barrels of oil per day. This platform services natural gas and condensate production from its Swimmy well, which flows through the Sea Robin Pipeline to onshore processing plants. As of August 24, 2012, it was producing approximately 13.4 million cubic feet equivalent per day, net to Contango, from this platform.

On July 10, 2012, the Company spud its South Timbalier 75 prospect (Fang) with the Spartan 303 rig. It has a 100% working interest in this wildcat exploration prospect. On July 3, 2012, the Company spud its Ship Shoal 134 prospect (Eagle) with the Hercules 205 rig. The Company purchased the deep mineral rights on Ship Shoal 134 from an independent third-party. It has a 100% working interest in this wildcat exploration prospect. On December 21, 2011, the Company purchased an additional 3.66% working interest (2.67% net revenue interest) in Mary Rose #5 (previously Eloise North). The Company has a 47.05% working interest (38.1% net revenue interest) in Dutch #5.

Offshore Properties

During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012 (fiscal 2012), State Lease 19396 expired and was returned to the state of Louisiana. As of August 24, 2012, the interests owned by Contango through its affiliated entities in the Gulf of Mexico, which were capable of producing natural gas or oil included Eugene Island 10 #D-1, Eugene Island 10 #E-1, Eugene Island 10 #F-1, Eugene Island 10 #G-1, Eugene Island 10 #I-1, S-L 18640 #1, S-L 19266 #1, S-L 19266 #2, S-L 18860 #1, S-L 19266 #3 and S-L 19261, Ship Shoal 263, Vermilion 170 and West Delta 36. As of August 24, 2012, interests owned by Contango through its related entities in leases in the Gulf of Mexico included Eugene Island 11, East Breaks 369, South Timbalier 97, Ship Shoal 121, Ship Shoal 122, Brazos Area 543, Ship Shoal 134 and South Timbalier 75.

Onshore Exploration and Properties

As of August 24, 2012, the Company had invested in Alta Energy Canada Partnership (Alta Energy) to purchase over! 60,000 a! cres in the Kaybob Duvernay. Contango has a 2% interest in Alta Energy and a 5% interest in the Kaybob Duvernay project. On April 9, 2012, the Company announced that through its wholly owned subsidiary, Contaro Company, it had entered into a Limited Liability Company Agreement (the LLC Agreement) to form Exaro Energy III LLC (Exaro). The Company owns approximately a 45% interest in Exaro. Exaro has entered into an Earning and Development Agreement (the EDA Agreement) with Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc. (Encana) to provide funding to continue the development drilling program in a defined area of Encana�� Jonah field asset located in Sublette County, Wyoming.

As of June 30, 2012, the Exaro-Encana venture had three rigs drilling, has completed five wells and achieved first production. As of August 24, 2012, the Company had invested to lease approximately 25,000 acres in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale (TMS), a shale play in central Louisiana and Mississippi.