In this article, we will take a detailed look at the 10 Best Energy Stocks to Buy For the Long Term.

The energy sector has lagged for the better part of the year. While the overall equity market has bounced back from its April lows, as depicted by the S&P 500 rallying to record highs, energy stocks have fared poorly.

The S&P 500 Energy Index is down approximately 1% for the year, an underperformance attributed to soft oil prices for the better part of the year. The performance of energy stocks is often tied to oil and gas prices.

The West Texas Intermediate crude, down by about 9% per barrel for the year, has come on supply being plentiful in the market. With eight members of the OPEC+ cartel planning to increase production by approximately 548,000 barrels per day, the outlook in the sector could deteriorate further.

Amidst the overall underperformance of the energy sector, some gems have stood and continue to remain resilient. According to Rob Ginsberg, technical analyst at Wolfe, its high time investors focused on gems backed by solid underlying fundamentals amid the deteriorating fundamentals in the energy sector.

“The landscape of the sector remains in the favor of stock pickers with outperformers being few and far between,” Ginsberg wrote in a research note to investors.

Given that energy stocks tend to perform independently of other types of stocks, they offer some of the best options for diversifying investment portfolios. Additionally, some of the stocks provide attractive dividend yields due to robust sales growth, making them attractive investment prospects for income-focused investors. Energy stocks can also help hedge against inflation, as oil and gas prices tend to rise during periods of inflation.

“There’s a huge amount of the oil industry that is devoted to the internal combustion engine,” says Michael Jones, who is chief executive of Caravel Concepts, a maker of asset allocation software for financial advisors. “When you buy into the energy space, you are buying into a gale-force headwind in terms of the long-term industry prospects.”

With that in mind, let’s take a look at the 10 Best Energy Stocks to Buy for the Long Term.

Our Methodology

To compile the list of the best energy stocks to buy for the Long Term, we sifted through financial media reports and used the Finviz stock screener to select the top energy stocks that are popular among elite hedge funds. We focused on companies that have grown their sales by over 20% in the past 5 years and also considered their upside potential based on analysts’ estimates (as of August 15). Finally, we ranked the stocks in ascending order based on the number of hedge funds that held stakes in them, as of Q1 2025.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is straightforward: our research has demonstrated that we can outperform the market by replicating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).

Best Energy Stocks to Buy For the Long Term

10. Riley Exploration Permian Inc. (NYSE:REPX)

5-Year Sales Growth: 142.30%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 10

Analyst Upside Potential: 46.26%

Riley Exploration Permian Inc. (NYSE:REPX) is one of the best energy stocks to buy for the long term. On August 6, the company delivered solid second-quarter results despite facing a challenging oil market and a regional operating environment. The company faced infrastructure constraints triggered by many operators in the Permian Basin.

Amid the challenges, the company generated earnings per share of $1.44, better than the analyst estimate of $1.16 a share. Revenue totaled $85.39 million versus $87.25 million expected. The company generated $34 million in operating cash flow, $18 million in total free cash flow, and $21 million in upstream free cash flow.

The solid financial results followed Riley Exploration’s progress in expanding its midstream infrastructure in New Mexico. The company also commissioned the initial phases of low-pressure gathering and high-pressure compression facilities. It also entered into a purchase agreement for a high-pressure grade pipe to be delivered in 2025.

Riley Exploration Permian Inc. (NYSE:REPX) is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on acquiring, exploring, developing, and producing oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids within the Permian Basin. It specializes in horizontal drilling of conventional, oil-saturated, and liquids-rich formations in the Permian Basin to generate long-term cash flow.

9. Woodside Energy Group Ltd (NYSE:WDS)

5-Year Sales Growth: 23.37%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 14

Analyst Upside Potential: 1.57%

Woodside Energy Group Ltd (NYSE:WDS) is one of the best energy stocks to buy for the long term. On July 23, the company delivered better-than-expected second-quarter results that topped consensus estimates. Revenue in the quarter came in at $3.27 billion, compared to the $3.16 billion that analysts had expected.

The better-than-expected revenue was mostly influenced by exceptional performance at the Sangomar field and strong operational results across the portfolio. In addition, Woodside Energy Group benefited from a strong realized quarterly price of $62 per barrel of oil equivalent. It also benefited from diversified pricing and optimization strategies.

During the quarter, Woodside Energy produced 50.1 million barrels of oil equivalent, up 2% from the previous quarter and 13% higher than the same quarter last year.

“We delivered strong production of 50 million barrels of oil equivalent for the quarter from our diverse portfolio of high-quality assets. At the same time, ongoing focus on cost control has enabled us to lower our unit production cost guidance for 2025,” said CEO Meg O’Neill.

Following the impressive second-quarter results, Woodside Energy Group updated its full-year production guidance to between 188 and 195 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe). The company also reduced its production cost guidance to between $8.0 and $8.5 per barrel of oil equivalent (boe) from the previous range of $8.5-$9.2 per boe.

Woodside Energy Group Ltd (NYSE:WDS) is a global energy company focused on the exploration, development, production, marketing, and sale of hydrocarbons, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), pipeline gas, and crude oil.