Earlier on January 24, Tom Lee, Managing Partner at Fundstrat Global Advisors, joined CNBC’s ‘Closing Bell’ to suggest energy and basic materials as top sector picks this year. Lee characterized the then-market environment as volatile but hesitated to label individual company challenges as representative of the broader market. He suggested that it is natural for stocks that have performed exceptionally well to face some punishment during earnings season. Furthermore, while Lee maintained his affinity for the MAG7 and other mega-caps due to their strong earnings visibility, he identified energy and basic materials as his top sector picks for 2026.
According to Fundstrat’s 2026 outlook, energy and materials had underperformed over the previous five years to a degree that historically marks a turning point to the upside. Lee argued that, because so much bad news was already baked in, the stocks could perform very well even with just ‘okay’ fundamentals. He also believes that the turnaround for small caps is likely part of a multi-year cycle, potentially lasting up to 12 years. He expects small caps to benefit from a dovish Fed and a possible wave of mergers & acquisitions.
That being said, we’re here with a list of the 11 cheap energy stocks to buy right now.
Our Methodology
We used screeners to identify energy stocks that are trading below a forward P/E of 15, and limited our final selection to companies that have recently reported noteworthy developments likely to impact investor sentiment. These stocks are also popular among analysts and elite hedge funds.
Note: All data was sourced on February 26.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating 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 427.7% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 264 percentage points (see more details here).
11 Cheap Energy Stocks to Buy Right Now
11. Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR)
Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR) is one of the cheap energy stocks to buy right now. On February 24, Matador Resources reported financial results for 2025, highlighted by a 9% increase in total proved oil and natural gas reserves, reaching 667 million BOE. During Q4, the company achieved its highest-ever average production of 211,290 barrels of oil and natural equivalent/BOE per day (121,363 barrels of oil per day). This success was paired with significant debt reduction, as the company paid down ~$200 million on its credit facility and maintained a strong leverage ratio of 1.1x.
For 2026, Matador’s operating plan prioritizes capital efficiency and moderate growth. The company expects to increase oil production by 3% while reducing total capital expenditures by 11% to ~$1.50 billion. This efficiency is driven by a projected 6% reduction in drilling and completion costs per lateral foot and a 13% improvement in well cycle times.
Additionally, Matador has secured a strategic gas transportation deal on the Hugh Brinson pipeline, which is expected to provide better market access and higher realized pricing by late 2026. Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR) also continues its brick-by-brick land strategy, having added 17,500 net acres in the Delaware Basin to maintain over a decade of high-quality drilling inventory.
Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR) is an independent energy company that acquires, explores, develops, and produces oil and natural gas resources in the US. It operates through two segments: Exploration & Production and Midstream.
10. Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC)
Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC) is one of the cheap energy stocks to buy right now. On February 24, Range Resources reported earnings for 2025, generating over $650 million in free cash flow and $1.3 billion in cash flow from operations. The company averaged 2.24 Bcfe per day in production while achieving record operational efficiencies, including a new benchmark of 9.7 frac stages per day. This performance allowed Range to reduce its net debt by $186 million.
For 2026, Range Resources has established a capital budget of $650 to $700 million, targeting a production increase to between 2.35 and 2.40 Bcfe per day. The strategy focuses on converting a substantial portion of its 500,000-foot drilled-but-uncompleted inventory, which provides a flexible path toward a further production ramp-up to 2.6 Bcfe per day in 2027.
Strategic marketing remains a key pillar of growth, highlighted by a new 10-year agreement to supply natural gas to a Midwest power plant at premium pricing. While Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC) anticipates a slight production dip in Q1 2026 due to the timing of infrastructure expansions, a mid-year step-up is expected as new processing capacity comes online.
Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC) operates as an independent natural gas, natural gas liquids/NGLs, and oil company in the US. The company explores, develops, and acquires natural gas, NGLs, and oil properties located in the Appalachian region.
