Energy Stock Carnage Sets Up ‘Rinse and Repeat’ Start to 2020

This post was originally published on this site

https://i-invdn-com.akamaized.net/content/pic22ad38d94dec5760d22c5d880ed1ee04.jpg

(Bloomberg) — Energy equity carnage was alive and well throughout 2019, and the start of 2020 could bring more of the same for the beaten-up sector, though some analysts are turning positive.

“We are in an environment where the playbook to kick off the year reads like a rinse and repeat from past years,” CIBC Capital Markets’ energy team said in a note to clients. The team added that “it’s also one that doesn’t require anyone to be a hero or to take on more heartburn than is necessary.”

The energy sector is the worst-performing group this year, up a mere 3% versus the S&P 500 Index’s rise of over 25%. Canada’s energy gauge has advanced about 12% against Toronto’s stock market gain of about 18%. has outpaced both indices during the same period.

A slightly positive tilt is creeping into analyst forecasts, with JPMorgan (NYSE:) recently turning “more sanguine” on the exploration & production sector, while Citigroup (NYSE:) sees a trade in oil service stocks having “legs” after persistent weakness. Still, analysts are favoring larger-cap firms before diving all in. One of Wall Street’s top strategists highlighted the potential for energy equities to rebound, as cyclical segments of the market could present an opportunity.

Capital discipline, the central mantra in which drillers are living by, remains a key focus point for investors. Shale pioneers see output growth slowing next year, which could be a positive for macro commodity prices. Merger and acquisition potential in the E&P sector exists, but higher oil prices will be needed to revive deals given a “clouded fundamental backdrop,” according to Bloomberg Intelligence.

Here are some analysts picks on various sub-sectors:

  • Citi’s top oilfield service picks for 2020 are Halliburton (NYSE:) Co., Nextier Oilfield Solutions, Chart Industries, Baker Hughes, Schlumberger (NYSE:), Select Energy Services and Liberty Oilfield Services. The bank thinks the oilfield service space has started to “turn the corner.”
  • Morgan Stanley’s top E&P and integrated oil picks include ConocoPhillips (NYSE:), Noble Energy (NYSE:) and Chevron (NYSE:). “The 2020 backdrop continues to favor large-cap and globally diversified companies,” the bank said in a note.
  • CIBC Capital Markets likes oil-sands firms including Suncor Energy, and pipeline stocks such as TC Energy. “Our top ideas for the coming year might seem somewhat mundane, but we view them as logical and the right place in which to allocate capital,” the bank wrote to clients in a note.
  • BMO Capital Markets favors Canadian energy firms relative to their neighbors down south as the northern group “appears to have largely addressed the lower for longer price environment, by restoring profitability even at these depressed prices,” Brian Belski said in a note.

See also:

Chip Analysts Struggle to Get Excited About 2020 After 52% Rally

Software Analysts See More Volatility in an Uncertain 2020

Airbus Secures Lead Over Boeing (NYSE:) as 737 Max Weighs Into 2020

After ‘Blood-Spilled’ Year, Pot Firms Brace for Repeat in 2020

Small-Caps Set to Retake 2020 Market Lead After Three-Year Lag

S&P 500 Melt-Up Is So Hot It’s Making Cheerleaders Into Skeptics

Disclaimer: Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. All CFDs (stocks, indexes, futures) and Forex prices are not provided by exchanges but rather by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual market price, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Therefore Fusion Media doesn`t bear any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this data.

Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.