The Best Energy Stocks to Buy

Energy stocks appeal to investors for a few different reasons.

• They tend to perform independently of other types of stocks, so investors buy them to diversify their portfolios.
• Many energy stocks offer attractive yields, and therefore, appeal to investors who like high-dividend stocks.
• They provide investors with a way to play rising oil prices.
• Energy stocks can help hedge against inflation as oil and gas prices typically rise during inflationary periods.

In the year to date, the Morningstar US Energy Index rose 24.12%, while the Morningstar US Market Index gained 11.22%.

The 5 Best Energy Stocks to Buy Now

These were the most undervalued energy stocks that Morningstar’s analysts cover as of June 15, 2026.

1. Energy Transfer ET
2. Devon Energy Corp DVN
3. Antero Resources AR
4. MPLX MPLX
5. Cheniere Energy LNG

To come up with our list of the best energy stocks to buy now, we screened for:

• Energy stocks that are undervalued, as measured by our price/fair value metric.
• Stocks that earn narrow or wide
  Morningstar Economic Moat Ratings
  , as well as companies that do not have a moat. We think companies with narrow economic moat ratings can fight off competitors for at least 10 years; wide-moat companies should remain competitive for 20 years or more.
• Stocks that earn a Low, Medium, High, or Very High
  Morningstar Uncertainty Rating
  , which captures the range of potential outcomes for a company’s fair value.

Here’s a little more about each of the best energy stocks to buy, including commentary from the Morningstar analysts who cover each company. All data is as of June 15, 2026.

Energy Transfer

• Morningstar Uncertainty Rating: Medium
• Morningstar Economic Moat Rating: None
• Forward Dividend Yield: 7.06%
• Industry: Oil and Gas Midstream

Midstream oil and gas company Energy Transfer is the most affordable stock on our list of the best energy stocks to buy. Energy Transfer is a diversified midstream firm operating from the wellhead to consuming demand. The stock is trading 21% below our fair value estimate of $24 per share.

Energy Transfer is a diversified midstream firm moving oil, gas, natural gas liquids, and refined products. However, it only excels in a couple of areas, namely natural gas and natural gas liquids. We expect the slowest growth from the crude and NGL segments, as liquids producers have pulled back, while natural gas demand is expected to grow 20%-30% by the end of the decade.

Natural gas transmission, both intrastate and interstate, is likely to receive most of the growth capital. Desert Southwest, a new interstate natural gas pipeline, will enter service in 2029. This build is expensive at $5.6 billion–$6.2 billion, but with 25-year terms and a guided 6 times capital cost/EBITDA, depending on the results of the open season, the investment should be a substantial driver for the segment. At the end of 2025, the project was upsized due to strong demand from utilities. A further 625 million cubic feet per day lateral was added in early 2026, showing further growth from the investment as a platform.

Beyond new pipelines, intrastate assets are likely to benefit from emerging data center demand. In keeping with the preference to assume commodity price risk, the firm’s marketing arm will supply data centers, such as Fermi’s, with natural gas. Other hyperscalers are eyeing in-basin projects, seeking to secure gas before it gets to market hubs. As the largest operator of intrastate pipelines in Texas, Energy Transfer is positioned to capture more of this demand.

NGLs are core to the firm’s service offerings, with substantial fractionation and dominant export capacity in Mont Belvieu. Energy Transfer is currently expanding its export and fractionation capabilities. It is also investing heavily in its field-level gathering and processing activities, as capturing barrels at the wellhead offers the best chance to retain them throughout the entire value chain.

Mergers and acquisitions remain a priority for growth. Energy Transfer has made many acquisitions over the years that resulted in substantial capital destruction. In recent years, acquisitions have been more restrained but remain consistent.

Read more about Energy Transfer here.

Devon Energy Corp

• Morningstar Uncertainty Rating: High
• Morningstar Economic Moat Rating: Narrow
• Forward Dividend Yield: 2.39%
• Industry: Oil and Gas E&P

Devon Energy is an oil and gas producer with acreage in several top US shale plays. The firm earns a narrow economic moat rating and the shares of its stock look 21% undervalued relative to our $55 fair value estimate.

In 2018, Devon Energy embarked on a series of shrewd capital allocation moves that included selling its EnLink Midstream interest, divesting its Canadian heavy oil and Barnett Shale interests, and merging with WPX Energy. This allowed Devon to recycle cash by shedding interests that were either noncore or higher on the cost curve. Recycled cash allowed Devon to meaningfully pivot toward the Delaware and enjoy newfound exposure in the Bakken. Previously, Canadian heavy oil and the Barnett Shale made up 40%-50% of its production.

Today, Devon is among the lowest-cost providers on the US shale cost curve, along with Diamondback Energy and EOG Resources. Devon’s reconstituted portfolio is buoyed by its presence in the Delaware, which has some of the lowest breakeven costs among US basins. About two-thirds of the firm’s production is tied to this premier asset, which helps Devon command favorable well production relative to peers. We expect management to continue allocating capital here; it signaled that over 50% of its roughly $3.6 billion in capital expenditure will be allocated to the Delaware in 2026.

But Devon is more than just a single-basin play. It has a meaningful presence in four of the top five US shale basins by lowest breakeven costs: the Delaware, Williston, Eagle Ford, and Anadarko basins. Exposure to high-quality assets with a near-17-year remaining inventory life, coupled with operational improvements from initiatives like longer laterals, should allow Devon to enjoy modest production growth. Importantly, we expect production gains to come at increasingly attractive drilling and completion costs.

We think Devon completed its reset with its revised capital allocation framework in late 2020. That framework was the first to implement a fixed plus variable dividend. In 2026, Devon’s capital allocation framework calls for returning 60% of its free cash to shareholders. Devon announced a 31% prospective increase to its fixed dividend starting in the first half of 2026, after the merger with Coterra closes.

Read more about Devon Energy Corp here.

Antero Resources

• Morningstar Uncertainty Rating: High
• Morningstar Economic Moat Rating: None
• Forward Dividend Yield: None
• Industry: Oil and Gas E&P

Next on our list of the best energy stocks to buy is Antero Resources. Antero Resources is an exploration and production firm whose operations represent a pure play in the Marcellus Shale, located in northern West Virginia. The stock is trading at a 19% discount to our fair value estimate of $42 per share.

Antero Resources produces natural gas in the Marcellus Shale in West Virginia. Its leaseholdings are primarily composed of land rich in natural gas liquids, which account for about a third of its production, positioning the firm well to capitalize on rising prices for ethane, propane, and butane. Overseas demand for these petrochemical feedstocks is robust, and Antero sends 50% of its NGL production to export markets. Antero also benefits from higher realized pricing as 75% of its natural gas is transported to the Gulf Coast and LNG facilities. While higher pricing on its commodities is favorable, it also pays much higher transportation fees than its peers. Antero has suffered at times due to this produce-and-export strategy, realizing thinner operating margins when gas prices are subdued. Like all Appalachia producers, it still has infrastructure constraints. Regulators and local authorities have strongly resisted new pipeline proposals recently, resulting in numerous delays and project cancellations, which limit the ability of producers to grow production. Still, with the recent acquisition of HG Energy, it seems Antero may be pivoting to expand its in-basin gas delivery, particularly as more data centers and power generation facilities move into the region.

A statistical analysis by Rystad Energy showed that Antero lacks inventory depth relative to peers, though it still has an estimated 25 years of reserves. Limited takeaway capacity also hurts in-basin commodity prices when demand for egress is high; Antero has mitigated this risk with firm transport contracts that guarantee transport out of the basin. However, we believe Antero overcommitted to these contracts to secure better realized pricing, which hurts the firm in a low-gas-price environment.

We like the steps Antero is taking in its hedging program to offset some of the risk associated with lower gas prices. In 2026, over half of its annual volumes are hedged, and we expect this to range from 25% to 50% of volumes in 2027 as the HG Energy deal is fully integrated at the operational level. Management specifically guided this level of hedging to limit risks associated with the acquisition.

Read more about Antero Resources here.

MPLX

• Morningstar Uncertainty Rating: Medium
• Morningstar Economic Moat Rating: Narrow
• Forward Dividend Yield: 7.73%
• Industry: Oil and Gas Midstream

MPLX is a partnership that owns pipelines and gathering and processing assets with extensive holdings in the Appalachian and Permian regions. Trading 12% below our fair value estimate, MPLX has an economic moat rating of narrow. We think shares of this stock are worth $63 per share.

MPLX is focused on building out its natural gas gathering and processing operations, namely in the Permian. Crucial to the strategy is developing a full value chain for shippers, from well-to-water on the Gulf Coast. To achieve this, MPLX has made several acquisitions and is developing a marine export terminal with Oneok through a joint venture. We agree with the strategy broadly, and the policy of projects being substantially contracted before proceeding with investment does much to secure returns.

Assets within the NGL segment are a mix of wholly owned and joint venture stakes. By developing pipelines in coordination with partners it retains some input into the destination of volumes while limiting the capital needed. The crude and refined products segment are almost all wholly owned, which is largely the result of the assets being dropped down by its sponsor MPC.

Its crude and refined products operations are receiving incremental investment. This segment is the bedrock of the firm and contributes 65% of EBITDA. It is also the most profitable. However, the mature nature of both crude and refined products movement means there are limited opportunities to make a meaningful impact.

Acquisitions are becoming a core growth strategy, while organic investments continue. To reach management’s guided mid-single-digit EBITDA growth, acquisitions will be required per the most recent guidance. We do not currently incorporate unannounced acquisitions and projects in our forecasts beyond incremental organic growth in existing assets.

Read more about MPLX here.

Cheniere Energy

• Morningstar Uncertainty Rating: Medium
• Morningstar Economic Moat Rating: Wide
• Forward Dividend Yield: 0.94%
• Industry: Oil and Gas Midstream

Midstream oil and gas company Cheniere Energy rounds out our list of best energy stocks to buy. Cheniere Energy is a liquefied natural gas producer with two facilities in Corpus Christi, Texas, and Sabine Pass, Louisiana. The stock is 10% undervalued relative to our fair value estimate of $262 per share.

Cheniere Energy sits between North American natural gas producers and global LNG consumers. It seeks to strike long-term purchase agreements with both producers and consumers alike. Long-term purchase agreements allow the firm to lock in a consistent spread between the cost of gas and the fees it charges customers—90% of all volumes Cheniere produces are linked to these arrangements. These agreements, in part pioneered by Cheniere, last two decades. Both their long duration and strength give investors high confidence in their cash generation.

Looking forward, Cheniere has three expansion plans at its two facilities in Corpus Christi and one at Sabine Pass. Projects at Corpus Christi are currently under construction, expected to be fully in service in 2026, and the Midscale 8 and 9 expansion in 2028 and 2029. These expansions are secured by long-term contracts.

In 2025, the company announced a strategic pivot away from large multitrain expansions toward incremental single train expansions. This is a sound policy, as it allows the firm to more quickly approve projects and ramp up production in line with demand. It also allows Cheniere to better compete in a more crowded market. New projects from competing facilities will be bringing volumes to the market every year, but since Cheniere was bringing volumes online only through large expansions, customers would have to wait or buy from competitors. Cheniere is generally regarded as the first-choice supplier for quality buyers. Bringing smaller amounts online more frequently allows Cheniere to capture more of its demand.

Cheniere has also announced an efficiency program intended to bring additional volumes from existing assets online.

Corpus Christi has attracted more investment interest from Cheniere due to it being wholly owned by the corporation, whereas the Sabine Pass facility is held under a master limited partnership trading as CQP. The parent, Cheniere Energy or LNG, holds 48.6% of basic units and 100% of general partner units (2% of the MLP). Effectively, this gives the parent both control and most of the distributions.

Read more about Cheniere Energy here.

How to Find More of the Best Energy Stocks to Buy

Investors who’d like to extend their search for top energy stocks can do the following:

• Review Morningstar’s comprehensive list of energy stocks to investigate further.
• Stay up to date on the energy sector’s performance, key earnings reports, and more with Morningstar’s energy sector page.
• Read Morningstar’s Guide to Stock Investing to learn how our approach to investing can inform your stock-picking process.
• Use the Morningstar Investor screener to build a shortlist of energy stocks to research and watch.