These Are Billionaires’ Favorite Energy Stocks

Oil and gas dominate the energy holdings of billionaire-led hedge funds.

By Jack Caporal – Updated Apr 25, 2024 at 2:05 PM EST

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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 (IEP -2.55%). 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.

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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.

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
Stock	Value of Shares	Total Shares	Percent of Portfolio
SilverBow Resources (NYSE:SBOW)	$1,454,000	50,000	0.1%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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%

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Data source: Funds’ 2023 Q4 Forms 13F.
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.

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About the Author

Jack Caporal is the Research Director for The Motley Fool and Motley Fool Money. Jack leads efforts to identify and analyze trends shaping investing and personal financial decisions across the United States. His research has appeared in thousands of media outlets including Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, Bloomberg, and CNBC, and has been cited in congressional testimony. He previously covered business and economic trends as a reporter and policy analyst in Washington, D.C. He serves as Chair of the Trade Policy Committee at the World Trade Center in Denver, Colorado. He holds a B.A. degree in International Relations with a concentration in International Economics from Michigan State University.

TMFJackCap

Jack Caporal has positions in Plug Power. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apa, BP, Chevron, EQT, and NextEra Energy. The Motley Fool recommends Occidental Petroleum, Pioneer Natural Resources, and Transocean and recommends the following options: long January 2025 $1 calls on Transocean. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.