Short Sellers Move Back Into Oil Stocks as Crude Prices Slip
Short interest in oil and gas stocks rose in the final two weeks of December. Since then, crude prices have been volatile due to the confrontation between the United States and Iran, reaching a 30-day high a week ago and…
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Crude oil traded around $59.00 a barrel early Monday, down more than $6 since a weekly high of around $65.50 in the past week but still less than its 12-month high of $66.60 posted on April 23, 2019. Over the past month, the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for immediate delivery has increased by less than $0.50 a barrel.
Of the companies we watch, short interest increased on four of six energy stocks during the two-week reporting period ending December 31. Some of them are among the 10 undervalued energy stocks as a new year and new decade begins.
Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX | CVX Price Prediction) saw short interest increase by 6% to 21.51 million shares, which represents about 1.1% of the company’s float. Days to cover remained unchanged at four. In the two-week short interest period, the stock’s share price increased by about 2.5%. Its 52-week trading range is $110.17 to $127.34, and it closed at $116.44 on Friday, down about 0.9% for the day.
Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) short interest rose by 1% to 38.81 million shares, or 0.9% of the company’s float. In the short interest period ended December 31, the share price rose by about 1.1%. The stock’s 52-week range is $66.31 to $83.49, and it closed at $69.14 on Friday, down about 0.9%for the day. Days to cover remained at three.
BP PLC (NYSE: BP) saw a drop of 17% in short interest during the two-week period. About 0.13% of the total float, or 4.19 million American depositary shares (ADSs), were short, and days to cover remained less than one. The company’s shares traded up by about 2.2% in the period, and they closed Friday at $38.74, down by about 0.6% for the day, in a 52-week range of $35.73 to $45.38.
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ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) short interest remained essentially unchanged in the two weeks to December 31. Some 11.36 million shares were short, representing about 1% of the company’s total float. Days to cover remained at two, and the stock price increased by about 3.8% during the two weeks. Shares closed Friday at $65.42, down about 1% for the day, in a 52-week range of $50.13 to $71.01.
Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE: PBR), or Petrobras, posted a rise of 13% in short interest during the two-week period. Some 17.85 million ADSs were short as of December 31, about 1.2% of the total float. The stock closed at $15.64 on Friday, down by 0.7% for the day, in a 52-week range of $12.68 to $17.90. It traded up by around 5.6% in the short interest period, and days to cover remained at one.
Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: OXY) saw short interest rise by 1% to 21.25 million shares. Days to cover remained at two, and about 2.4% of the company’s shares were short. In the two weeks to December 31, the share price increased by about 5.4%. The stock’s 52-week range is $37.25 to $68.83, and shares closed Friday at $45.90, up about 1.2% for the day.
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Paul Ausick has been writing for 247Wallst.com for more than a decade. He has written extensively on investing in the energy, defense, and technology sectors. In a previous life, he wrote technical documentation and managed a marketing communications group in Silicon Valley.
He has a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Chicago and now lives in Montana, where he fishes for trout in the summer and stays inside during the winter.
