In this article, we are going to discuss the 15 best large cap energy stocks to buy according to hedge funds.
Though the overall energy industry has fallen by over 6.4% so far this year, thanks in large part to the plunge in crude oil prices and the prospects of a global economic slowdown, the same cannot be said about the nuclear energy sector. After years of negative sentiment following the tragic Fukushima disaster, nuclear is back on the table, and it has emerged as a key candidate to power the global AI boom and its accompanying data centers.
Hailed as a safe, clean, and reliable source of energy, nuclear received a massive boost this month after President Trump signed an executive order to quadruple the American nuclear energy capacity by 2050. The White House wants to reinvigorate the sector by cutting down on regulations and fast-tracking new licenses for reactors and power plants.
The order has put special focus on small modular reactors, or SMRs, as they ‘offer a lower initial capital investment, greater scalability, and siting flexibility for locations unable to accommodate more traditional larger reactors’. Though the technology is already in advanced stages in other parts of the world, particularly in Russia and China, it is still relatively new in the U.S. President Trump’s orders are intended to change that and ‘re-establish the United States as the global leader in nuclear energy’
With that said, here are the Best Large Cap Energy Stocks to Buy Now.
Our Methodology
To collect data for this article, we scanned Insider Monkey’s database of hedge funds’ stock holdings and picked the top 15 companies operating in the energy sector with the highest number of hedge fund investors in Q1 of 2025. When two or more companies had the same number of hedge fund investors backing them, we ranked them by their market cap as of the writing of this piece. To make sure we only give you the giants of the energy industry, we have restricted our search to companies with a market cap of $10 billion and above. The following are the Best Energy Stocks According to Hedge Funds.
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 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
15. Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR)
No. of Hedge Fund Holders: 67
Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) is an independent natural gas and liquids company operating in the Appalachian Basin. The company is the most integrated natural gas and NGL business in the US and one of the largest suppliers to the country’s LNG market.
Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) had a tough start to the year, falling below both earnings and revenue forecasts in the first quarter of 2025. The company reported adjusted EPS of $0.78 against estimates of $0.88, while its revenue of $1.35 billion also fell below expectations by $44.45 million, despite growing by over 20% YoY.
However, Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) generated free cash flow of $337 million in Q1, benefiting from strong natural gas and NGL premiums relative to their benchmarks. The company used this cash to accelerate its share repurchase program, repurchasing $92 million of stock or nearly 1% of its shares YTD through April 30, 2025. AR has approximately $1 billion of capacity remaining on its current share repurchase program. Moreover, the energy firm used its liquidity to reduce its net debt by $204 million.
Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) made significant progress in improving its drilling and capital efficiencies during the first quarter, with CEO Paul Rady highlighting in the company’s earnings call:
“We increased our completed feet per day to an average of 2,452 feet. This represents an increase of 15% from the 2,140 feet per day average in 2023. During the first quarter, we averaged 12.3 completion stages per day. This continues the upward trend when comparing to our performance the past two years. Notably, we set a new company record in the first quarter, achieving 18 completion stages per day on 1 pad in March.”
14. Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)
No. of Hedge Fund Holders: 68
Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) is the world’s leading provider of technology for reservoir characterization, drilling, production, and processing to the global energy industry. The company’s clients include major oil and gas producers worldwide.
Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) reported a lackluster performance for its Q1 2024, falling below estimates in both revenue and earnings, primarily due to a significant reduction in drilling activity in Mexico. The company’s adjusted EPS of $0.72 slightly missed expectations by $0.01, while its revenue also fell by 2.5% YoY to $8.49 billion and missed consensus by $102.52 million.
That said, Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)’s cash flow from operations more than doubled to $660 million in Q1, while its free cash flow came in at $103 million. The company aims to return more than 50% of its free cash flow to shareholders, with a commitment to return a minimum of $4 billion through dividends and share repurchases this year. SLB announced a quarterly dividend of $0.285 per share last month and currently boasts an annual dividend yield of 3.39%.
Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) has warned that the global upstream investment in 2025 is expected to decline compared to last year, and so the company is working on optimizing supply chains, cutting costs, and aligning resources with activity levels in the coming quarters. Moreover, SLB remains focused on expanding beyond fossil fuels, with its combined revenue from CCS, geothermal, critical minerals, and data center solutions on pace to exceed $1 billion in 2025.
13. ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)
No. of Hedge Fund Holders: 70
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) is one of the world’s largest independent E&P companies based on oil and natural gas production and proved reserves. The energy firm made headlines last year when it completed the acquisition of Marathon Petroleum for $22.5 billion, adding over 2 billion barrels of low-cost oil and gas resources to its portfolio.
The deal helped ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) increase its total production to 2.389 million boed during Q1 2025, exceeding the high end of our production guidance and up by over 25% compared to the same period last year. The company also beat forecasts in both earnings and revenue during the quarter.
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) boasts a low-cost portfolio with a cost-to-supply of less than $40 a barrel in the U.S. and internationally, allowing it to not only survive but thrive in current market volatility. Moreover, the company is proud of its disciplined capital allocation strategy, which was recently highlighted when COP reduced its capital spending guidance by $500 million and operating costs by $200 million in response to lower crude prices. However, despite cutting CapEx, the company maintained its production guidance, reiterating that it will deliver the same amount of oil and gas but for less money.
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) is known for its commitment to shareholders, with distributions of $2.5 billion to shareholders in Q1 2025, including $1.5 billion through share repurchases and $1 billion through dividends. This represents 45% of CFO returned in the quarter, consistent with its long-term track record.