Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

(Bloomberg) -- Oil fell to the lowest since the early days of the Iran war on signs that flows through the Strait of Hormuz are rising and on progress toward an interim peace deal.

Most Read from Bloomberg

SpaceX IPO Raises $75 Billion in Biggest Debut of All Time US, Iran Edge Toward Interim Deal Signing Close to G7 Next Week Xbox Plans Significant Layoffs as New CEO Plans Overhaul Trump Insists Iran Deal Is Close After Scrapping New Strikes SpaceX Shares Indicated More Than 35% Higher on Gray Markets

Brent futures fell 3.4% to settle at $87.33, the lowest since March 5, and ended the week down 6.2%. West Texas Intermediate settled 3.2% lower on Friday, while European gas slumped as much as 8.4%.

The US and Iran are edging closer to an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz that could be signed as the Group of Seven world leaders meet next week, senior officials said. But conflicting messages between Washington and Tehran continued to cast doubt on that timeline. The war has ushered in the biggest supply disruption in history, roiling energy markets and damaging the global economy.

In addition to hopes around peace, the decline in prices has been accelerated by markets finding workarounds to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for about a fifth of the world's oil before the war. In recent weeks, a rising number of ships have been crossing the waterway with their satellite signals off, while a plunge in Chinese imports and surge in American exports have also helped balance markets.

Even if the interim peace deal is finalized and the strait is reopened, "we'll still have constrained supplies," said Rob Haworth, a senior investment strategist at US Bank.

Oil prices are down about 30% since the peak of the conflict. Markets were oversupplied before the war broke out in February, and Brent crude, the global benchmark, had been hovering near $70 per barrel.

Shipowners are closely watching peace talk developments, and some tanker owners are expressing caution about the strait's potential reopening. Others were already predicting a frantic free-for-all if the waterway opens in earnest.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a social media post Friday that a Memorandum of Understanding between the two sides has "never been closer." The conciliatory tone bolstered market expectations that an end to the conflict, now in its fourth month, may finally be within reach, as Iranian officials have been more restrained than their US counterparts in signaling progress toward a deal.

Story Continues

Yet for all the progress, there was little clarity as to what the text of the so-called memorandum of understanding will contain and both sides offered differing descriptions. The disconnect is raising doubts about how quickly Hormuz can return to anything approaching its pre-war operations.

Haworth said ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz to Asia, the primary market for Persian Gulf suppliers, would take two months to get there and back.

Even then, many countries would still prefer to buy American crude over barrels coming out of the Persian Gulf, said Scott Shelton, an energy specialist at ICAP.

"The market is going to look to diversify away from them, at least in the near-term," Shelton said, "because Iran's pretty much figured out that it's not very hard to close that strait."

Investors are treating the latest diplomatic developments with caution after several earlier claims of imminent breakthroughs proved unfounded. The resulting volatility has pushed open interest on the global Brent benchmark to the lowest level in more than a year as traders cut back on risk exposure.

At the same time, the global supply cushion is rapidly being pushed to its limits. Chevron Corp. Chief Executive Officer Mike Wirth warned on Friday that inventories are declining toward "uncomfortable" levels. Exports of oil from the US emergency reserves are pouring out of the country in record volumes.

In European gas markets, there have been elevated bullish positions of late, potentially adding impetus to declines as trader adjust their positions.

The news on a potential deal seems to have led market players "to want to close out some long position before the weekend," said Tom Marzec-Manser, director of Europe gas and LNG at Wood Mackenzie.

--With assistance from Nicholas Lua, Gabriel Levin and Elena Mazneva.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

The Bankrupting of a Mobile Home Billionaire How a Tiny British Island Fell Into an International Gambling Scandal Gen Z's Latest Career Flex: A Boardroom Seat Not Even Messi Could Deliver Soccer's American Breakthrough Ice Cream Not Decadent Enough for You? Dip It in Butter

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

View Comments

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

Chevron Corporation CVX is reportedly set to partner with two Argentine energy players, namely YPF and Pluspetrol, to ink new contracts with Transportadora de Gas del Sur TGS for a natural gas liquids (NGLs) project in Argentina. The contract entails supplying natural gas for the proposed $3 billion project led by TGS.

The report mentioned that Chevron, YPF and Pluspetrol are expected to take up approximately 80% of the project’s capacity. The signing of these contracts significantly increases the likelihood of the project reaching a final investment decision. The project involves converting natural gas, including the gas extracted alongside oil from the producing wells, into high-value liquids such as butane and propane. The higher value natural gas liquids produced can then be exported to international markets.

In recent years, Argentina’s Vaca Muerta shale has gained significant recognition as one of the world’s largest unconventional gas reserves, and several companies, including Chevron, are planning to expand their presence in the shale basin. The liquids project, developed by TGS, is one of many processing and export ventures expected to boost production from the Vaca Muerta shale and help the country become an energy supplier over the coming years.

Notably, these projects will help Argentina reduce its dependence on energy imports and boost foreign exchange reserves. TGS has previously stated that it will finance a part of this multi-million dollar project using its own capital. For Chevron, this deal stands to expand its footprint in Argentina’s booming shale industry and benefit from the shale basin's significant resource potential.

Zacks Rank and Key Picks

CVX currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) while TGS carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Some better-ranked stocks from the energy sector are Cenovus Energy CVE and W&T Offshore WTI. While Cenovus sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present, W&T Offshore carries a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Cenovus Energy Inc. is a Canadian integrated energy company with operations spanning the upstream, midstream and downstream sectors. The company is involved in exploration and production from its low-cost oil sands and heavy oil assets in Canada. The strategic MEG Energy acquisition is expected to boost Cenovus Energy's production levels in 2026.

W&T Offshore benefits from its prolific Gulf of America assets, which offer low decline rates, strong permeability and significant untapped reserves. The company’s recent acquisition of six shallow-water fields in the Gulf of America boosts its future production prospects, which is expected to enhance its revenues.

Story Continues

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

Chevron Corporation (CVX) : Free Stock Analysis Report

W&T Offshore, Inc. (WTI) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Cenovus Energy Inc (CVE) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Transportadora De Gas Sa Ord B (TGS) : Free Stock Analysis Report

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

Zacks Investment Research

View Comments

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

WaterBridge stock surged Friday, reclaiming its latest buy point and hitting new highs. That makes it the IPO Stock Of The Week.

Continue Reading

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

National Fuel Gas Company NFG announced that its board of directors has approved a 4% hike in the quarterly dividend payment, lifting the payout to 55.5 cents per share. The dividend is payable on July 15, 2026, and will be distributed to shareholders of record as of June 30, 2026.

The company’s new annualized dividend is $2.22 per share compared with the previous annual dividend of $2.14. Its current dividend yield is 2.79%, higher than the Zacks S&P 500 composite's average of 1.44%.

The company has paid dividends for 124 consecutive years and has increased its annual dividend for 56 straight years. NFG’s long history of dividend distribution reflects its strong operational performance and resilient cash-flow generation.

NFG's Dividend Sustainability Outlook

Although dividend payments are never guaranteed from one quarter to the next, a company’s strategic efforts to improve earnings and operational performance can help assess the sustainability of its dividend policy.

National Fuel Gas benefits from rising natural gas demand driven by data center growth, extensive shale assets, enhanced well designs, strategic acquisitions and disciplined capital investments that support long-term production, earnings and dividend growth.

NFG in October 2025 announced that it has agreed to acquire CenterPoint’s Ohio natural gas utility business for $2.62 billion, expected to close in the fourth quarter of calendar 2026. The transaction is expected to enhance long-term regulated adjusted EPS growth of 5-7% and strengthen dividend prospects by increasing regulated earnings.

The company generated nearly $160 million in free cash flow in the second quarter of fiscal 2026. NFG plans to increase free cash flow through strategic investments and operational improvements in its production and gathering businesses, supporting future dividend increases and stronger shareholder returns.

The company plans capital investment of $0.96-$1.07 billion in fiscal 2026. Its systematic capital spending to strengthen its natural gas and oil operations is positively impacting total production.

Consistent Dividend-Paying History

NFG is not the only company with a long history of dividend distribution. Chevron Corporation CVX, Exxon Mobil XOM and Occidental Petroleum OXY are the other players from the same sector that have a long history of dividend payment.

Chevron has been increasing shareholder value through consistent annual dividend hikes for 39 consecutive years. Currently, the company’s quarterly dividend is $1.78 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $7.12.

CVX's dividend yield is 3.83%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Chevron's 2026 earnings is pegged at $15.88 per share, suggesting year-over-year growth of 117.83%.

Exxon Mobil’s dividends per share have grown at an average annual rate of 5.8% over the last 43 years. The company’s board has approved a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $4.12.

XOM's dividend yield is 2.81%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Exxon Mobil's 2026 earnings is pegged at $11.80 per share, suggesting year-over-year growth of 66.81%.

Occidental Petroleum also has a long history of paying dividends. On Feb. 18, 2026, the board approved an 8% increase in the quarterly dividend to 26 cents per share, raising the annualized payout to $1.04 per share.

OXY's dividend yield is 1.87%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Occidental Petroleum's 2026 earnings is pegged at $5.79 per share, suggesting year-over-year growth of 161.99%.

Story Continues

NFG's Stock Price Performance

In the past month, the company’s shares have plunged 3.7% compared with the industry’s 1.8% fall.Zacks Investment Research

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

NFG’s Zacks Rank

NFG currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

Chevron Corporation (CVX) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) : Free Stock Analysis Report

National Fuel Gas Company (NFG) : Free Stock Analysis Report

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

Zacks Investment Research

View Comments

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

Quick Read

XLE has surged 31% year-to-date, nearly four times the S&P 500's return, with Exxon and Chevron alone comprising 41% of the concentrated fund. Exxon beat earnings estimates by 15% and Chevron by 46% as the Strait of Hormuz closure drove Brent crude to $138 per barrel in April. Hormuz reopening would deflate XLE's risk premium toward $75 crude, while OPEC spare capacity shrinking to 2.5M bpd means future disruptions hit harder. Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.

If you put $10,000 into the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSEARCA:XLE) on the last trading day of 2025 and forgot about it, you would be sitting on roughly $13,131 as of the June 8 close. The same $10,000 in the S&P 500 would be worth about $10,840. Energy, the sector everyone wrote off as a value trap stuck behind the AI trade, is up about 31% year to date against 8.4% for SPY. That gap, almost 23 points in five months, is the single most surprising scoreboard in the 2026 market.Miha Creative / Shutterstock.com

The headline you may have seen says 29%. The actual number is a touch better. XLE opened the year at $44.42 and closed Monday at $58.33. Over one year, the fund is up about 44%, versus roughly 23% for SPY. Over five years, it has more than doubled, up about 152%. The fund is a plain-vanilla SPDR with a fee that rounds to almost nothing, and it does one thing well, which is concentrate your money in a handful of the biggest US oil and gas names. Top of the book is heavy. Exxon at 23.7% and Chevron at 17.6% together are 41.3% of the fund. Add ConocoPhillips and EOG and you have most of the explanation.

What Actually Did the Work

The mechanism is straightforward. Sector concentration met a sector-specific catalyst, and the catalyst is geopolitics. According to the EIA, the Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed to shipping traffic since late February following military action, removing access to a corridor that carried nearly 20% of global oil supply. Brent went vertical. Daily spot prices touched $138 per barrel on April 7, the highest since the weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine, and the April monthly average came in around $117 per barrel. WTI followed, with the YTD high at $114.58 on the same day.

Prices have since cooled. Brent printed $98.29 on June 1 and WTI sat at $95.96, which the St. Louis Fed places in the 82.8th percentile of its trailing 12-month range. That is the important part. Even after a meaningful pullback, crude is trading well above where the integrated majors built their 2026 budgets. The 12-month WTI average is $72.26, and current spot is more than $20 above it.

Story Continues

Now look at how the top holdings translated that into earnings. Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) posted adjusted EPS of $1.16 versus a $1.01 consensus, a 15% beat and the fourth straight. Underlying earnings rose to $8.77 billion from $7.58 billion year over year, even after roughly $3.88 billion in unfavorable derivative timing and $706 million in Middle East supply-disruption losses washed through the GAAP line. CEO Darren Woods told investors that "ExxonMobil is a fundamentally stronger company than it was just a few years ago, built to perform through disruption and across market cycles." The buyback authorization for the year is $20 billion. The stock is up 27.8% YTD.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) did even better at the EPS line, with $1.41 versus $0.97 expected, a 46% beat and the sixth in a row. Production jumped 15% year over year to 3,858 MBOED as the Hess deal bedded in, and US output cleared 2 million barrels per day for a third straight quarter. The company returned $2.5 billion in buybacks in the quarter, raised the dividend for a 39th consecutive year, and Mike Wirth framed the result as evidence that the portfolio held up "despite heightened geopolitical volatility and related supply disruptions." Shares are up about 27% YTD.

Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG), the two big E&P names in the top ten, told a parallel story with a different texture. COP beat by roughly 12% on EPS, kept its target of returning 45% of cash from operations to shareholders, and pulled Qatar out of 2026 production guidance because of the Middle East situation. EOG benefited from the Encino acquisition, pushing production to 1,383.8 MBoed from 1,090.4 a year earlier and revenue up about 18% to $6.92 billion. EOG is the standout performer of the four, up about 36% YTD, with COP up 28.9%.

The pattern is clean. Three years of M&A (Hess into Chevron, Marathon into ConocoPhillips, Encino into EOG) finished integrating just as Brent prices spiked. The synergies are real, the cost work is real, and the capital return engines kept running on schedule. Then a Middle East shock dropped onto the top line. That is how a sector ETF turns a single-digit broad market into a 31% mover.

The Soft Patch Inside the Run

The recent tape complicates the story a little. XLE is up only about 5% over the last month, and crude has been the reason. WTI has fallen from a May peak near $112 to $96, and natural gas has gone in the other direction entirely, with Henry Hub dropping from a January 23 spike of $30.72 per MMBtu to $3.07 on June 1. The EIA now expects Henry Hub to average $2.83 per MMBtu in Q2 2026, 11% below Q2 2025. So one of the two commodities driving the rally is rolling over. The other has slipped about 16% off its high but is still pricing a risk premium.

What You Watch From Here

The forward look hinges on two indicators a reader can actually track. The first is the Strait of Hormuz. The EIA's May STEO assumes Brent averages around $106 per barrel in May and June, then steps down to $89 in Q4 2026 and $79 in 2027 as shut-in production gradually returns. If tanker traffic genuinely resumes, the risk premium that built XLE's YTD comes out of the price, and the integrated names re-rate toward a $75 to $85 crude backdrop rather than $95 to $100. The second is OPEC spare capacity, which the EIA now models at 2.5 million barrels per day in 2027, down from a prior estimate of 3.8 million. Less cushion in the system means the next disruption hits harder, which is the structural reason this trade has a longer half-life than a typical war-premium spike.

Retail is starting to notice. Reddit sentiment on XLE has run 76 to 80 (bullish to very bullish) over the past several days, anchored by a single WSB post titled "You hear that, Mr. Anderson? That is the sound of inevitability." Mention volume is still low, which is usually how these trades work before they get crowded. The Exxon news cycle, with retail flagging "Exxon warns oil inventories near record lows, price spike ahead" as the top driver on June 1, suggests the inventory tightness narrative is still doing work.

The honest read is that XLE's YTD is mostly a Hormuz trade wearing the costume of an earnings story. The earnings are genuine, the cost work is genuine, and the capital returns are durable. But the marginal dollar in the price came from a tanker chokepoint, and the EIA, the futures curve, and the integrated CEOs themselves are all guiding to a lower oil price in 2027. If the strait reopens cleanly, the broad market starts closing the gap. If it does not, or if the next disruption arrives before the first one resolves, the sector that has refused to quit in 2026 keeps doing exactly that. Watch Hormuz traffic, watch the Brent curve, and watch whether WTI holds the $90 line. That is the whole game from here.

Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.

View Comments

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

Shell plc SHEL has reportedly taken a significant step in re-establishing its presence in Venezuela by signing five agreements with the Venezuelan government to advance strategic oil and gas projects. The agreements mark a new phase in the relationship between the energy giant and the South American nation, highlighting the company's growing role in Venezuela's efforts to revitalize its energy sector and attract foreign investment.

The latest deals build on preliminary agreements signed earlier in the year and reinforce Shell's position as one of the first major international energy companies to capitalize on the country's renewed investment opportunities.

Loran Gas Field Takes Center Stage

At the heart of the agreements is Shell's participation in the Loran offshore gas field, a massive reservoir estimated to hold approximately 7 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas. The field extends across maritime boundaries shared by Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago, making it one of the region's most strategically important gas developments.

Venezuelan officials described the agreement as a historic milestone, as it advances the first phase of the Loran field's development plan. The project is expected to play a critical role in unlocking Venezuela's vast offshore gas resources and strengthening regional energy cooperation.

Supporting Venezuela's Gas Export Ambitions

The Loran project, alongside the 4.2-Tcf Dragon gas field in which Shell is also involved, is expected to pave the way for Venezuela's entry into offshore gas exports. Initial supplies are expected to be transported to Trinidad and Tobago, where the gas can be processed into liquefied natural gas (LNG) for international markets.

This development could create a new revenue stream for Venezuela while helping monetize the country's substantial untapped gas reserves. For Shell, the projects offer access to significant long-term gas resources in a region with growing export potential.

Broader Energy Cooperation Beyond Gas

The agreements extend beyond offshore gas development. Shell and Venezuela also reached a technical alliance aimed at expanding production from oilfields in Monagas North. Another pact focuses on procuring equipment and parts designed to reduce gas flaring, supporting operational efficiency and environmental performance.

Additionally, increased oil production linked to Shell's activities is expected to improve the availability of diluents used in producing Venezuela's flagship Merey crude blend and supplying domestic refineries.

Story Continues

Broader Industry Implications

The agreements come amid broader geopolitical and economic shifts, including efforts to revitalize Venezuela's energy sector. They are among the first major expansion deals following reforms aimed at attracting international capital.

At the same time, BP p.l.c. BP is also expected to participate in the Loran gas field and the adjacent Cocuina-Manakin offshore gas project under separate agreements signed with the Venezuelan government in April. BP already has exposure to the region through its Manakin-Cocuina exploration and production license, awarded in 2024. However, U.S. approvals were revoked, prompting BP to lobby for reinstatement.

Chevron Corporation's CVX joint ventures with PDVSA are already producing approximately 260,000 barrels per day — about a quarter of Venezuela's total output. In April, CVX also signed an asset swap agreement with PDVSA, expected to support a potential 50% increase in production over the next two years within its existing footprint.The restructuring also positions Chevron to compete more effectively as Venezuela opens its energy sector to increased foreign investment following regulatory reforms.

A Strategic Win for Shell

The latest agreements elevate Shell, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), to one of the most important partners of Venezuela's state-owned energy company, PDVSA. Having previously scaled back operations and closed offices in the country, Shell is now emerging as a key participant in some of Venezuela's most significant energy projects.

With the Loran and Dragon developments moving forward, the company is positioning itself to benefit from future gas exports while strengthening its presence in a resource-rich region undergoing a gradual energy-sector revival. The agreements underscore Shell's commitment to pursuing attractive growth opportunities and expanding its role in the evolving global energy landscape.

You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

BP p.l.c. (BP) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Chevron Corporation (CVX) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR (SHEL) : Free Stock Analysis Report

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

Zacks Investment Research

View Comments

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

3 Market-Beating Stocks with Exciting Potential

The best-performing stocks typically have robust sales growth, increasing margins, and rising returns on capital, and those that can maintain this trifecta year in and year out often become the legends of the investing world.

The bottom line is that over the long term, earnings growth goes hand in hand with the biggest winners. Keeping that in mind, here are three market-beating stocks that could turbocharge your returns.

DXP (DXPE)

Five-Year Return: +420%

Founded during the emergence of Big Oil in Texas, DXP (NASDAQ:DXPE) provides pumps, valves, and other industrial components.

Why Will DXPE Beat the Market?

Impressive 16.8% annual revenue growth over the last five years indicates it's winning market share this cycle Operating margin improvement of 4.1 percentage points over the last five years demonstrates its ability to scale efficiently Share buybacks catapulted its annual earnings per share growth to 18.3%, which outperformed its revenue gains over the last two years

DXP's stock price of $167.65 implies a valuation ratio of 24.2x forward P/E. Is now the time to initiate a position? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it's free.

Curtiss-Wright (CW)

Five-Year Return: +497%

Formed from a merger of 12 companies, Curtiss-Wright (NYSE:CW) provides a range of products and services to the aerospace, industrial, electronic, and maritime industries.

Why Should You Buy CW?

Annual revenue growth of 11% over the past two years was outstanding, reflecting market share gains this cycle Share repurchases over the last two years enabled its annual earnings per share growth of 18.9% to outpace its revenue gains Free cash flow margin grew by 6.3 percentage points over the last five years, giving the company more chips to play with

At $757.50 per share, Curtiss-Wright trades at 46x forward P/E. Is now a good time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it's free.

Chevron (CVX)

Five-Year Return: +71.9%

Operating everything from deepwater drilling rigs to corner gas stations, Chevron (NYSE:CVX) explores for, produces, and transports crude oil and natural gas, then refines that crude oil into gasoline, diesel, and other petroleum products.

Why Are We Positive on CVX?

4.1% annual revenue growth over the last ten years surpassed the sector average as its products resonated with customers Unparalleled revenue scale of $190 billion gives it advantageous pricing and terms with suppliers Solid free cash flow generation relative to most peers gives it a cushion and grants it various reinvestment opportunities

Story Continues

Chevron is trading at $185.65 per share, or 11.4x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? See for yourself in our full research report, it's free.

Stocks We Like Even More

WHILE YOU'RE HERE: Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. The best stocks don't just beat the market once. They do it again. And again. Robust revenue growth, rising free cash flow, returns on capital that leave their competition in the dust. The market has already rewarded these businesses.

But our AI platform says the party isn't over. Find out which 9 stocks made the cut this week — FREE. Get Our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks for Free HERE.

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,326% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Kadant (+351% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.

View Comments

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

With an annual dividend yield of 3.76%, Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) is included among the 10 High Yield Crude Oil Stocks to Buy Now.Here is Why Chevron (CVX) is among the 10 High Yield Crude Oil Stocks to Buy Now

Photo by Luis Ramirez on Unsplash

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) manufactures and sells a range of high-quality refined products, including gasoline, diesel, marine and aviation fuels, premium base oil, finished lubricants, and fuel oil additives.

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) has raised its dividend for 39 consecutive years, granting it the coveted title of a Dividend Aristocrat. The company maintained its strong commitment to shareholders even through multiple commodity downturns, including the oil market collapse in 2020, as its business has been designed to comfortably cover the payout even at crude prices below $50 per barrel.

To sustain its high distributions, Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) expects to grow its free cash flow at a CAGR of more than 10% through 2030 at $70 oil. A significant catalyst to support this growth is the Tengizchevroil expansion in Kazakhstan, which is expected to add around $6 billion to the company’s annual free cash flow.

Chevron also revealed in its Q1 report last month that it remains on track to achieve its $3 to $4 billion structural cost reduction target by year-end. The program will help lower the oil and gas giant’s breakeven point even further and enhance profitability across cycles.

While we acknowledge the potential of CVX as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

READ NEXT: 10 Best Renewable Energy Stocks to Buy According to Billionaires and 14 Best Oil and Gas Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds.

Disclosure: None. Follow Insider Monkey on Google News.

View Comments

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

Quick Read

SCHD turned $1 million into $2.3 million since 2016, paying roughly $53,000 a year in cash dividends without reinvesting a single share. SCHD's index automatically drops dividend cutters, screens for 10 consecutive years of payments, and charges just 0.06%, making it a rules-based filter that sidesteps yield traps. New buyers entering at today's 3.82% yield must watch dividend growth and SCHD's spread over Treasury rates, not the past decade's price chart. Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.

A million dollars dropped into Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHD) on June 8, 2016, with every quarterly dividend pulled out as cash the way an actual retiree would spend it, is worth about $2.3 million today. Along the way it kicked out roughly $527,000 in distributions, which works out to around $53,000 a year. That figure rose over time. The capital more than doubled, the income kept coming, and nobody had to sell a single share to fund it. That is the headline. The mechanism behind it is what matters.Tapati Rinchumrus / Shutterstock.com

What the arithmetic actually says

Most people quoting SCHD's track record cite total return with dividends reinvested, which inflates the comparison. The Fuse price feed shows an adjusted ten-year return of 228% from June 8, 2016 to June 8, 2026, calculated as if every distribution had been plowed back into more shares. That is not the retiree case. The retiree spends the dividends. So you should split the outcome into two buckets, price appreciation on a fixed share count, and cash distributions taken as income.

On the price side, the fund underwent a 3-for-1 split in October 2024, which is why the headline ticker price today reads $32.29 rather than something in the high $90s. Adjust for the split and the share count a million dollars purchased in 2016 has appreciated to roughly the $2.3 million figure, with about $1.35 million of that being capital gains. The dividend side did the rest. SCHD paid $0.2981 in March 2016 on a pre-split basis and was paying $0.2782 in December 2025 on a post-split basis, which once you back out the 3-for-1 reflects a meaningfully larger dividend per original share. Income grew. Principal grew. You wouldn't have had to reinvest a cent.

Why this fund, and not the other dividend funds

SCHD tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index, which screens for companies with at least a decade of consecutive dividend payments and then weights survivors by a blend of cash flow to debt, return on equity, dividend yield, and five-year dividend growth. That methodology has two effects worth understanding. It quietly drops companies that cut payouts, which is how high-yield traps are avoided. And it tilts the portfolio toward mature businesses that generate more cash than they need, a company that can keep raising the dividend through a recession.

Story Continues

None of SCHD's holdings are exciting. That is the point. The sector tilt sits in utilities at 19.9%, communication services at 18.5%, and health care at 16.2%, with zero energy exposure in the sector breakdown despite COP and CVX sitting in the top holdings (a quirk of how the index classifies integrated names). Fees are essentially absent, with a 0.06% expense ratio on $71.6 billion in net assets. You are essentially paying for a rules-based filter on what is already a defensive universe.

That defensiveness explains the dividend growth. Boring blue chips with strong balance sheets raise payouts most years and rarely cut them. The 2024 distributions looked unusual, with $0.8241 in June 2024 and $0.7545 in September 2024, because the split came in October of that year and the pre-split dividends sit in the record at their original size. Normalize for the split and the trend is a steady climb, with 2025 quarters running between $0.2488 and $0.2782 on the new share base.

Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.

What a retiree should actually watch from here

The current dividend yield sits at 3.27%, which is the most important number for anyone thinking about the next ten years rather than reliving the last ten. SCHD has rallied hard recently, up 21% in the trailing year and 18% year to date. A higher price on the same dividend stream means a lower starting yield for new money. The retiree who deployed a million dollars in 2016 was buying yield in the 3.5% to 4% range on cost that has since compounded. The retiree deploying a million today is buying almost the same yield on a portfolio that is now priced for the recovery.

The conditions that produced the run are mostly still in place. The methodology has not changed, the expense ratio has not changed, and the underlying companies still generate enough cash to keep raising payouts. What has changed is the entry price.

The leading indicators worth tracking are simple. Watch the rate of dividend growth quarter over quarter, because that is what compounds the retiree's income over a multi-decade horizon. Watch the fund's index reconstitution each spring, because additions and deletions reveal which names the rules engine is rotating into and out of. And watch the trailing yield against the ten-year Treasury, because when SCHD's yield compresses too far below the risk-free rate, the income case weakens even if the price case stays intact. A reader doing those three things will know whether the next decade looks like the last one well before any headline tells them.

Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.

View Comments

Haftungsausschluss: Der Text wurde mit Hilfe einer KI zusammengefasst und übersetzt. Für Aussagen aus dem Originaltext wird keine Haftung übernommen!

Forty thousand shareholders descended on Omaha on May 2 for what had been billed as a generational transition. Greg Abel presided over the 2026 Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting as CEO for the first time. Warren Buffett was in the front row as Chairman.

During the lunch break, Buffett sat down with CNBC's Becky Quick. She asked him about energy prices. His answer was three words.

What Warren Buffett said about energy prices at the 2026 Berkshire annual meeting

Quick asked Buffett directly: higher energy prices , what does that mean for the economy and for Berkshire, which owns a major utility company?

"Well, I think it's all working. It's all working," Buffett told Quick, according to the CNBC transcript.

The response is vintage Buffett. No prediction, no alarm, no price target. Just a simple observation that the system, higher demand, higher investment, higher prices to fund that investment, is operating exactly as it always has.

The economy adjusts, the utilities build, the bills go up, and the people who own the infrastructure tend to do fine.

More Warren Buffett:

One of Warren Buffett's dividend stocks is key to reopening Strait of Hormuz Greg Abel sends Berkshire investors a powerful new signal Warren Buffett's Berkshire warns Americans on housing market

Buffett also told Quick the current investing environment is not ideal for deploying Berkshire's enormous cash pile.

"I've compared the markets to a church with a casino attached," he said, according to CNBC.

On energy, though, his tone was different: calm, matter-of-fact, long-term. Energy is not a casino. It is a toll road, and traffic is increasing.

What Greg Abel told shareholders about electricity demand, data centers, and who pays

The sharper operational detail came from Abel during the main meeting session. Abel told shareholders that Iowa, home to MidAmerican Energy, the utility he ran before becoming Berkshire's CEO, could see 50% electricity demand growth within five years, driven by data centers and AI infrastructure, according to OilPrice.com.

That figure deserves a moment. A 50% increase in electricity demand in five years, in a single state, from one category of customer.

Data centers do not turn off at night, do not reduce consumption during slowdowns, and are being built everywhere at a pace the grid was not designed to absorb.

Abel also addressed who should bear the cost of that demand. His position was unambiguous: new data center load should pay the full cost of its incremental demand on the system, not be spread across residential and commercial customers.

Story Continues

If a hyperscaler wants to plug 500 megawatts into the Iowa grid, Iowa homeowners should not be subsidizing the connection costs, according to OilPrice.com.

That argument has significant implications for anyone paying an electricity bill. If data center operators bear their own full infrastructure costs, energy prices for large tech users will rise substantially. If those costs get distributed across all ratepayers instead, every household pays more.

Either way, more people pay more. Abel's statement is a signal that Berkshire intends to fight for the former outcome.On energy, though, his tone was different: calm, matter-of-fact, long-term. Energy is not a casino. It is a toll road, and traffic is increasingZuchnik/Getty Images

Why the Berkshire energy message matters for American consumers and the broader economy

Berkshire Hathaway Energy is not a minor player in this conversation. BHE's pipeline network touches and moves 15% of all natural gas consumed across the entire United States.

The company owns PacifiCorp, NV Energy, and MidAmerican Energy, serving millions of customers across the western US and midwest. When Berkshire's leadership describes structural demand growth as a defining theme of the next decade, it is speaking from direct operational knowledge.

Berkshire's energy conviction also shows up in its equity portfolio. When Quick asked Buffett about higher crude oil prices in a March 2026 interview, he noted that Berkshire's two major oil positions, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum, go up a lot when energy prices rise. He was careful not to predict what comes next, but he has held both positions through extended periods of volatility, which is itself a statement of long-term directional confidence in energy demand, according to the CNBC transcript.

Abel also acknowledged the pressures the utility sector is under. The "regulatory compact" that has governed utilities for generations is under severe strain from inflation, wildfire liabilities, and accelerating demand growth.

PacifiCorp faced massive litigation after Oregon wildfires in 2020. Meeting 50% demand growth in five years while managing wildfire risk and regulatory scrutiny is a genuinely difficult operating challenge, not just a capital allocation opportunity.

For American consumers, the message from Omaha is straightforward even if it was delivered quietly. Energy infrastructure investment is accelerating because demand is accelerating. That investment costs money, and the only place that return can come from is the bills consumers and businesses pay.

The Iran war has already pushed energy prices higher in 2026. AI data centers are already pushing electricity demand higher in states like Iowa. Wildfire risk and grid modernization are already pushing utility capital requirements higher across the western US.

Each of those forces was present before the Berkshire annual meeting. Abel's comments put numbers on them. Buffett's three-word response framed them: the system is working, which means it is working as designed, and the design involves passing costs forward.

Buffett did not say energy prices are going up. He said the system is working. Those two statements are closer than they sound.

Related: Berkshire Hathaway sends urgent message to home sellers

This story was originally published by TheStreet on Jun 11, 2026, where it first appeared in the Economy section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

View Comments