A challenging macro environment continued to roil markets last week with the S&P 500 dropping 2.4% and the Nasdaq dropping 3.6%. Inflation remained persistently high, rising 7.9% in February, WTI crude briefly touched $130 per barrel earlier in the week (Brent went even higher touching $140 per barrel) and the war in Ukraine shows no signs of abating. The humanitarian toll this unnecessary war is creating is painful to watch. Millions have lost their homes, evacuation corridors have come under shelling and the economic damage this conflict will cause is likely to be widespread.
Given the hit to supply from sanctions on Russia, domestic crude producers like Continental Resources (NYSE:CLR) and Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) are uniquely positioned to benefit from higher WTI crude prices. Other companies in the energy complex including transportation companies (pipelines) like Enbridge (NYSE:ENB) and Enterprise Product Partners (NYSE:EPD), service companies like Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) and Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) and downstream refiners like Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) and Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) are also going to benefit from higher oil prices.
