The Dow has regained nearly 200 of the 600 points it lost yesterday and while it may be a short-lived attempt by bulls to make major margins in the event of a recovery, it could also be indicative that the panic over the credit slash has subsided somewhat. Investing right now certainly entails a major risk, and perhaps the answer isn’t sifting through the bargain bins but investigating which stocks are beginning to recover in trading this morning. Financial stocks are certainly among this group, but the risk entailed there may be more than it’s worth. Contrarian investments in the ever-ailing financial stocks has been a long-pursued strategy and as yesterday proved, the lack of trust toward banks is seemingly too high to lead to a full recovery. That said, a more reliable strategy could be oil and gas companies. The amount of fossil fuel available diminishes with each day and while it’s estimated the supply will extend for more than a century, the closer we get to the end of the reserves and the more the population demands, the higher oil will go. That’s likely why the energy sector has been pushing higher in the recovery. Even if the American economy is depleted, nations overseas are becoming more and more sophisticated and expending a rising amount of energy.

1)    Northern Oil & Gas Inc. (NOG):  Northern Oil & Gas released their-quarterly earnings this morning, revealing the company posted the 14th consecutive quarter or increased production, sky high oil and has sales and nearly three times hedging gains. The long-term strength and improvements make Northern Oil & Gas a seemingly safe option for the uncertain times. The company is up 36 percent today.

 

2)    Callon Petroleum Co.’s (CPE): Callon also reported earnings today and second-quarter profit for the company rose on higher prices for oil and increased production of oil and gas. Callon earned 19.9 million or 50 cents per share on revenue of $36.8 million. This represents a massive improvement from the year-ago period when the company earned $2.1 million or 7 cents per share on $21.6 million. Callon is up 13 percent today.

 

3)    SandRidge Energy Company (SE): SandRidge had been experiencing major weakness on the drop in the price of oil, down 30 percent between August 3-5. Additional debt within the company has been a cause for concern, but SandRidge’s goal to raise production annually by double digits makes this company look like a growth opportunity.   The cash flow statement indicates heightened drilling and production in coming months that will help the company reach its goal of $2 Billion EBITA. Even if it falls short of its lofty expectations, the fact that it’s growing, and that output is rising will help increase value for SandRidge. Investors appeared to be agreeing, helping the stock recover over 11 percent of its value in morning trading.