Billionaires remain bullish on fossil fuel companies even as pressure grows on them to adapt their business models to the demands of governments around the world scrambling to address climate change.
An analysis of the holdings of hedge funds run by billionaires, such as Ken Griffin’s Citadel, Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater, and Chase Coleman’s Tiger Global, shows that oil and gas companies and those in adjacent industries dominate their energy stocks.
On the other hand, renewable energy companies hardly show up in the top 10 energy stocks held in billionaire-led funds.
Read on for a deep dive into which energy stocks billionaires are investing in.
Methodology
Methodology
The Motley Fool analyzed 16 hedge funds run by billionaires to determine what the wealthiest investors are buying. The analysis is based on funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
The following funds are included in the analysis:
- Citadel (Ken Griffin)
- Renaissance Technologies (Jim Simons)
- Bridgewater Associates (Ray Dalio)
- Carl Icahn’s Personal Holdings (Carl Icahn)
- BlueCrest Capital Management (Michael Platt)
- Millennium Management (Israel Englander)
- Tiger Global Management (Chase Coleman)
- D.E. Shaw & Co. (David Shaw)
- Tudor Investment Corp. (Paul Tudor Jones)
- Coatue Management (Philippe Laffont)
- Two Sigma Investments (John Overdeck and David Siegel)
- The Children’s Investment Fund (Christopher Hohn)
- Soros Fund Management (George Soros)
- Caxton Associates (Bruce Kovner)
- Viking Global Investors (Andreas Halvorsen)
- Elliott Management (Paul Singer)
The top energy stocks billionaires are buying
The top energy stocks billionaires are buying
These are the stocks that appear in the top 10 energy holdings of more than one of the hedge funds analyzed:
| Stock | Number of Funds Stock Appears in Top 10 Energy Holdings |
|---|---|
| Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) | 7 |
| Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) | 5 |
| Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD) | 5 |
| Schlumberger N.V. (NYSE:SLB) | 5 |
| Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES) | 4 |
| Chevron (NYSE:CVX) | 3 |
| Coterra Energy Inc. (NYSE:CTRA) | 3 |
| Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) | 3 |
| EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT) | 3 |
| NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) | 3 |
| Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) | 3 |
| Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU) | 3 |
| Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) | 3 |
| Warrior Met Coal (NYSE:HCC) | 3 |
| Alpha Metallurgical Resources (NYSE:AMR) | 2 |
| APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) | 2 |
| BP (NYSE:BP) | 2 |
| Cenovus Energy Inc. (NYSE:CVE) | 2 |
| CNX Resources Corporation (NYSE:CNX) | 2 |
| ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) | 2 |
| Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) | 2 |
| Permian Resources Corporation (NYSE:PR) | 2 |
| Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) | 2 |
| Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC) | 2 |
| Southwestern Energy Company (NYSE:SWN) | 2 |
| Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) | 2 |
Exxon Mobil, Marathon Petroleum, Pioneer Natural Resources, Schlumberger N.V., and Hess are the most common stocks to appear in the top 10 energy holdings of the billionaire-led funds analyzed for this article.
Some of the stocks that appear in multiple funds' top 10 energy investments are household names: Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Phillips 66, BP, and ConocoPhillips. But most of them are less well-known independent oil and gas companies and equipment providers.
Sixty-one different energy stocks appear in the top 10 tech holdings across the 16 funds analyzed.
Oil and gas companies account for 32 of those 61 stocks. An additional nine are in the oil and gas equipment and services space. Just three could be considered to be in the alternative energy industry.
The top tech stocks billionaires are investing in by hedge fund
Citadel
The top energy stocks held by Citadel
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chevron | $1,799,146,641 | 3,633,025 | 1.8% |
| Pioneer Natural Resources | $1,594,704,415 | 4,240,784 | 1.6% |
| Permian Resources Corporation | $885,324,265 | 6,005,863 | 0.9% |
| EQT Corporation | $869,014,629 | 2,455,121 | 0.9% |
| Exxon Mobil | $604,046,932 | 7,078,122 | 0.6% |
| BP | $538,866,727 | 2,707,873 | 0.5% |
| Phillips 66 | $451,911,111 | 1,717,379 | 0.5% |
| Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) | $401,046,344 | 2,083,033 | 0.4% |
| Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) | $393,881,366 | 8,615,078 | 0.4% |
| ConocoPhillips | $361,319,116 | 6,899,353 | 0.4% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $3.2 billion
- Percent of portfolio in technology stocks: 3.3%
Eight of the top 10 energy stocks held by Ken Griffin’s Citadel Securities are oil and gas companies. One, Patterson-UTI Energy, is an oil and gas equipment and service provider.
Just one company in Citadel’s top energy holdings is a renewable energy company: Plug Power.
Citadel’s largest fossil fuel energy investments are a mix of integrated hydrocarbon companies such as Chevron that extract and refine oil and manufacture other chemicals and companies focused exclusively on exploration and extraction, such as Pioneer Natural Resources and Permian Resources.
Renaissance Technologies
The top energy stocks held by Renaissance Technologies
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exxon Mobil | $450,138,000 | 4,502,276 | 0.7% |
| Alpha Metallurgical Resources | $185,428,000 | 547,115 | 0.3% |
| Marathon Petroleum | $142,244,000 | 958,775 | 0.2% |
| Schlumberger N.V. | $122,372,000 | 2,351,504 | 0.2% |
| Southwestern Energy Company | $107,017,000 | 16,338,525 | 0.2% |
| Peabody Energy Corporation | $106,658,000 | 4,385,622 | 0.2% |
| Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) | $84,504,000 | 3,725,939 | 0.1% |
| Warrior Met Coal | $69,706,000 | 1,143,279 | 0.1% |
| Cenovus Energy Inc. | $69,127,000 | 4,149,694 | 0.1% |
| SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM) | $65,843,000 | 1,700,500 | 0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $.02 billion
- Percent of portfolio in energy stocks: 3.2%
Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technology’s top energy holding is Exxon Mobil.
The fund’s top 10 energy investments are all in fossil fuel companies, including three coal companies: Alpha Metallurgical Resources, Peabody Energy Corporation, and Warrior Met Coal.
Renaissance is invested in a number of independent oil and gas companies, including Antero Resources and SM Energy Company. Renaissance is the only fund to have those two companies in its top 10 energy holdings.
Bridgewater
The top energy stocks held by Bridgewater Associates
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
| Schlumberger N.V. | $51,539,323 | 990,379 | 0.3% |
| Marathon Petroleum Corporation | $33,362,010 | 224,872 | 0.2% |
| Coterra Energy | $31,111,789 | 1,219,114 | 0.2% |
| Halliburton | $24,888,407 | 688,476 | 0.1% |
| EQT Corporation | $24,114,214 | 623,751 | 0.1% |
| Marathon Oil Corporation | $23,454,407 | 970,795 | 0.1% |
| Exxon Mobil | $21,408,317 | 214,126 | 0.1% |
| APA Corporation | $21,355,274 | 595,186 | 0.1% |
| Range Resources Corporation | $16,073,598 | 528,042 | 0.1% |
| Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV) | $14,939,478 | 340,152 | 0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $.40 trillion
- Percent of portfolio in tech stocks: 2.3%
Energy makes up a small portion of Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater’s portfolio. Its top energy investments are entirely in the oil and gas industry.
Two of Bridgewater’s top 10 energy investments are oil and gas equipment and services providers: Schlumberger N.V. -- the fund’s top energy investment -- and Halliburton.
Five are upstream oil and gas companies engaged primarily in exploration and extraction. The rest are downstream companies or integrated.
Icahn
The top energy stocks held by Carl Icahn
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| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVR Energy (NYSE:CVI) | $2,020,779,000 | 66,692,381 | 18.5% |
| Occidental Petroleum | $641,778,000 | 16,485,432 | 5.9% |
| SandRidge Energy (NYSE:SD) | $65,873,000 | 4,818,832 | 0.6% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $2.7 billion
- Percent of portfolio in tech stocks: 25%
Carl’s Icahn’s largest energy investment, CVR Energy, is also the largest investment in his personal holdings outside of his namesake company, Icahn Enterprises (NASDAQ:IEP). CVR Energy is a holding company with assets that operate in petroleum refining and marketing and nitrogen fertilizer manufacturing.
Occidental Petroleum commands 5.9% of Icahn’s personal investments, which makes it his fourth-largest investment.
BlueCrest
The top energy stocks held by BlueCrest Capital Management
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| NextEra Energy | $14,904,835 | 377,637 | 2.5% |
| Exxon Mobil | $6,643,471 | 66,448 | 1.1% |
| Chevron | $4,127,257 | 27,670 | 0.7% |
| ConocoPhillips | $1,559,052 | 13,432 | 0.3% |
| Schlumberger N.V. | $1,361,939 | 26,171 | 0.2% |
| Brooge Energy (NASDAQ:BROG) | $832,306 | 11,443,455 | 0.1% |
| Transocean | $108,864 | 17,144 | <0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $29.5 billion
- Percent of portfolio in tech stocks: 4.9%
Michael Platt’s BlueCrest’s top energy investment is NextEra Energy, a clean energy company that engages in electricity generation, transmission, distribution, and battery storage.
BlueCrest is the only hedge fund analyzed for this article whose top energy investment is not an oil and gas or oil and gas equipment and services company.
Still, the remainder of its energy portfolio is entirely in oil and gas companies and those that provide equipment and services to them. Despite that, its investment in NextEra is larger than the rest of its energy portfolio combined.
Millennium
The top energy stocks held by Millennium Management
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pioneer Natural Resources | $776,961,974 | 3,455,007 | 0.7% |
| Hess | $433,171,536 | 3,004,797 | 0.4% |
| Shell (NYSE:SHEL) | $279,335,147 | 4,245,215 | 0.3% |
| Cenovus Energy Inc. | $275,159,469 | 16,518,463 | 0.3% |
| BP | $270,307,355 | 7,635,801 | 0.3% |
| Schlumberger N.V. | $213,477,499 | 4,102,181 | 0.2% |
| Exxon Mobil | $184,170,858 | 1,842,077 | 0.2% |
| Marathon Petroleum | $164,101,589 | 1,106,104 | 0.2% |
| Chevron | $159,136,119 | 1,066,882 | 0.2% |
| Devon Energy Corporation | $138,573,380 | 3,059,015 | 0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $4.5 billion
- Percent of portfolio in tech stocks: 4.3%
Oil and gas dominate Israel Englander’s Millennium Management’s top energy stocks.
Within that industry, Millennium’s holdings are fairly balanced and diversified. It is invested in a handful of downstream and integrated companies with operations in North America.
Schlumberger N.V. is the lone oil and gas equipment and service provider in Millennium’s top energy investments.
Shaw
The top energy stocks held by D.E. Shaw & Co.
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exxon Mobil | $776,961,974 | 3,455,007 | 0.7% |
| Pioneer Natural Resources | $433,171,536 | 3,004,797 | 0.4% |
| Devon Energy Corporation | $279,335,147 | 4,245,215 | 0.3% |
| EQT Corporation | $275,159,469 | 16,518,463 | 0.3% |
| Southwestern Energy Company | $270,307,355 | 7,635,801 | 0.3% |
| CNX Resources | $213,477,499 | 4,102,181 | 0.2% |
| Hess | $184,170,858 | 1,842,077 | 0.2% |
| Transocean | $164,101,589 | 1,106,104 | 0.2% |
| Range Resources Corporation | $159,136,119 | 1,066,882 | 0.2% |
| Permian Resources Corporation | $138,573,380 | 3,059,015 | 0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $2.4 billion
- Percent of portfolio in tech stocks: 3.6%
The top energy holdings of David Shaw’s hedge fund, D.E. Shaw & Co., are split almost evenly between upstream and downstream or integrated oil and gas companies. The lone exception is oil and gas equipment and service provider Schlumberger N.V.
Shaw is the only hedge fund to feature Southwestern Energy Company in its top 10 energy holdings. The natural gas exploration and extraction company primarily operates in the Appalachia and Haynesville basins.
Tudor
The top energy stocks held by Tudor Investment Corp.
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pioneer Natural Resources | $191,301,143 | 850,681 | 2.6% |
| Exxon Mobil | $63,997,298 | 640,101 | 0.9% |
| Occidental Petroleum Corporation | $20,576,066 | 344,600 | 0.3% |
| Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR) | $15,635,192 | 274,977 | 0.2% |
| Halliburton | $14,886,859 | 411,808 | 0.2% |
| Coterra Energy | $13,700,233 | 536,843 | 0.2% |
| Peabody Energy Corporation | $12,928,130 | 94,969 | 0.2% |
| Civitas Resources (NYSE:CIVI) | $10,494,469 | 431,516 | 0.1% |
| Hess Midstream (NYSE:HESM) | $9,576,140 | 140,043 | 0.1% |
| Warrior Met Coal | $8,458,305 | 267,414 | 0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $.44 billion
- Percent of portfolio in energy stocks: 6.1%
Paul Tudor Jones’ Tudor Investment Corp. is relatively top-heavy with its energy investments. Pioneer Natural Resources, an upstream oil and gas company, accounts for 43% of its entire energy portfolio.
Tudor is one of the few hedge funds to have companies engaged in coal production in its top 10 energy stocks. For Tudor, those companies are:
- Peabody Energy Corporation, which has coal mining operations in the United States and Australia.
- Warrior Met Coal, which mines and exports steelmaking coal from its operations in Alabama.
Coatue
The top energy stocks held by Coatue Management
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bloom Energy Corporation (NYSE:BE) | $65,666,136 | 4,436,901 | 0.3% |
| NextEra Energy | $32,851,229 | 540,850 | 0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $0.1 billion
- Percent of portfolio in energy stocks: 0.4%
Coatue Management, led by Philippe Laffont, is invested in just two energy stocks, Bloom Energy and NextEra Energy, both of which are in the alternative energy space.
Bloom Energy is Coatue’s top energy holding. The company produces fuel cells powered by natural gas or biogas.
NextEra provides clean electricity generation, transmission, distribution, and battery storage.
Two Sigma
The top energy stocks held by Two Sigma Investments
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Schlumberger N.V. | $175,745,793 | 3,377,129 | 0.4% |
| Devon Energy Corporation | $143,231,352 | 3,161,840 | 0.3% |
| Transocean | $100,981,491 | 15,902,597 | 0.2% |
| Valero Energy Corporation | $91,491,530 | 703,781 | 0.2% |
| PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) | $75,298,029 | 1,712,876 | 0.2% |
| Occidental Petroleum | $74,379,075 | 1,245,672 | 0.2% |
| APA Corporation | $72,581,652 | 2,022,900 | 0.2% |
| CNX Resources | $62,118,480 | 21,946,654 | 0.2% |
| Plains GP Holdings (NASDAQ:PAGP) | $57,540,917 | 3,607,581 | 0.1% |
| Hess | $50,320,634 | 349,061 | 0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $1.4 billion
- Percent of portfolio in energy stocks: 3.4%
Energy doesn’t make up a significant part of Two Sigma Investments portfolio, which is led by billionaires John Overdeck and David Siegel. Oil and gas companies make up the entirety of Two Sigma’s top 10 energy stocks.
Three of those 10 energy holdings are oil and gas-related equipment and services companies:
- Schlumberger N.V., its top energy investment.
- Transocean, its third-largest energy investment.
- Plains GP Holdings, its eighth-largest energy investment.
Among the hedge funds analyzed for this article, Plains GP and PBF Energy appear only in Two Sigma’s top 10 energy stocks. Plains GP provides the midstream infrastructure that allows the transportation of oil and natural gas. PBF Energy is an oil refiner and offers some oil transportation services.
Soros Fund Management
The top energy stocks held by Soros Fund Management
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| SilverBow Resources (NYSE:SBOW) | $1,454,000 | 50,000 | 0.1% |
- Total value of all tech investments: $0.001 billion
- Percent of portfolio in tech stocks: 0.1%
George Soros' namesake fund owns just one energy stock, SilverBow Resources, and it makes up just a fraction of a percent of the hedge fund’s portfolio.
SilverBow is an oil and gas exploration and extraction company with operations in the Eagle Ford Shale and Austin Chalk in South Texas.
Caxton
The top energy stocks held by Caxton Associates
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hess | $29,196,292 | 202,527 | 1.5% |
| Pioneer Natural Resources | $22,126,168 | 98,391 | 1.1% |
| Marathon Petroleum | $12,858,955 | 86,674 | 0.7% |
| Coterra Energy | $10,208,000 | 400,000 | 0.5% |
| NextEra Energy | $4,801,072 | 79,043 | 0.2% |
| FuelCell Energy (NYSE:FCEL) | $2,332,768 | 1,457,980 | 0.1% |
| Alpha Metallurgical Resources | $1,932,183 | 5,701 | 0.1% |
| Warrior Met Coal | $1,484,620 | 24,350 | 0.1% |
| World Kinect Corporation (NYSE:WKC) | $572,507 | 25,132 | >0.1% |
| Valero | $571,870 | 4,399 | >0.1% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $0.08 billion
- Percent of portfolio in energy stocks: 4.6%
Bruce Kovner’s Caxton Associates’ has a relatively diversified set of energy investments, including oil and gas, coal, a pair of renewable energy companies, and an energy management and distribution company in its top 10 energy holdings.
NextEra and FuelCell Energy, which produces hydrogen fuel cells, make up the pair of renewable energy companies.
The coal companies in Caxton’s top 10 are Alpha Metallurgical Resources and Warrior Met Coal, both of which mine coal for steelmakers.
Caxton is the only fund analyzed to feature World Kinect Corporation in its top 10 energy holdings. The company operates across energy management and distribution, including supply, logistics, and transaction management.
Elliott
The top energy stocks held by Elliott Management
| Stock | Value of Shares | Total Shares | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marathon Petroleum | $1,641,603,400 | 11,065,000 | 18.0% |
| Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) | $320,682,754 | 10,000,000 | 3.52% |
| Peabody Energy | $319,929,600 | 13,155,000 | 3.5% |
| Seadrill Limited (NYSE:SDRL) | $294,508,869 | 6,229,037 | 3.2% |
| Phillips 66 | $103,183,500 | 775,000 | 1.1% |
| Valaris Limited | $13,714,000 | 200,000 | 0.2% |
- Total value of all energy investments: $2.3 billion
- Percent of portfolio in energy stocks: 26.1%
Elliott Management, led by Paul Singer, is top-heavy when it comes to energy investments. Marathon Petroleum accounts for 18% of its portfolio and is the fund’s second-largest holding.
Four of the top 10 stocks overall in Elliott Management are in the energy industry. Among its top energy investments are a coal company, two offshore drilling companies, and a trio of oil companies. Peabody is the lone coal company in Elliott Management’s portfolio.
Seadrill Limited and Valaris Limited are both primarily engaged in offshore oil and gas drilling around the world.
Marathon Petroleum, Suncor Energy, and Phillips 66 make up Elliott Management’s oil holdings.
Elliot stands out among the firms analyzed for having energy investments account for roughly 30%. Aside from it and Carl Icahn’s personal holdings, energy accounts for 3% to 4% of the investments of most of the other funds looked at for this article.
How to invest in energy like a billionaire
Fossil fuel companies dominate the energy holdings of the billionaire-led hedge funds analyzed for this article.
That may be disheartening for those concerned about climate change or are simply bullish on renewable energy companies. But it’s a reflection of where some of the most successful investors who manage massive funds believe value to be in the energy sector.
That said, energy makes up a relatively small portion of the portfolios analyzed. Among the funds that have energy holdings, they account for about 7% of the overall portfolio. Removing the two outliers -- Elliott Management, where energy makes up 30% of its portfolio, and Carl Icahn’s personal holdings, where energy makes up 25% -- energy accounts for just 3% of the remaining portfolios on average.
Even if investing in fossil fuel companies is a non-starter for value-based reasons, studying how billionaires are investing in energy can yield lessons for the everyday investor.
- Invest in what you know: Hedge funds aren’t devoting significant capital to relatively unproven energy companies that promise new game-changing technology. Instead, the majority of their energy investments are in household-name companies or those with a proven track record.
- Value consistency: Investing in oil, gas, and especially coal may feel like investing in the past, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t money to be made in those industries.
- Follow megatrends: Global energy demand is projected to steadily increase, which creates a clear value proposition to invest in the sector. At the same time, governments and companies are under increasing pressure to address climate change. How companies adapt to those trends will determine whether they’re a buy or a sell.
