Top 5 Energy Stocks To Invest In 2014

Dividends are a great way to enhance the income-generating potential of your portfolio. However, not all dividend payments are a future guarantee. Today, Motley Fool energy analysts Taylor Muckerman and Joel South offer up two stocks they believe will be able to maintain peer-leading payouts.�

In Taylor's corner is Seadrill (NYSE: SDRL  ) . Despite its high payout ratio, he strongly believes that the tailwinds behind the offshore drilling industry will provide the company with ample cash flow to maintain or even increase its distribution. Not many companies come close to its 8% yield with the additional potential for material share price gains.

For Joel, the master limited partnership space is one that he has faith in from a distribution perspective. His choice? Boardwalk Pipeline Partners (NYSE: BWP  ) . Its fee-based revenue stream ensures future visibility and with a shortage in domestic infrastructure, demand is likely to remain high.

Top 5 Regional Bank Stocks For 2015: Willbros Group Inc (WG)

Willbros Group, Inc. (Willbros) is a full service engineering and construction company specializing in energy infrastructure serving the oil and gas and power industries. The Company's services include engineering, procurement and construction (individually or as an integrated engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) offering), project management, maintenance and lifecycle extension services. As of December 31, 2011, the Company operated through three business segments: Upstream Oil & Gas, Downstream Oil & Gas and Utility Transmission and Distribution (Utility T&D), primarily in the United States, Canada and Oman. In January 2012, the Company changed its organization and includes three segments: Oil & Gas, Utility T&D and Canada. During 2011, the Company opened an office in the Houston Ship Channel. On October 11, 2011, the Company completed the sale of all assets and operations of InterCon Construction Inc., a non-strategic subsidiary within the Utility T&D segment.

Upstream Oil & Gas

The Company's core services include the design, construction, and maintenance of hydrocarbon transportation systems. The Company provides a full range of services for the engineering, design, procurement and construction of processing, pumping, compression and metering facilities. It focuses on building these facilities in the North American oil and gas market.

The Company's core services include the design, construction, and maintenance of hydrocarbon transportation systems. The Company provides a full range of services for the engineering, design, procurement and construction of processing, pumping, compression and metering facilities. It focuses on building these facilities in the North American oil and gas market.

The Company�� engineering services include project development, conceptual design, front-end engineering and feasibility studies; project engineering services; definitive design and drafting services; project management, estimating, scheduling! and controls; turnkey EPC arrangements; field engineering and construction liaison services; material and services procurement; planning and management of integrity and maintenance programs, and topographic, hydrographic and engineering as-built surveying, including the establishment of rights-of-way for public utilities and industrial uses. These services are furnished to a number of oil, gas, and pipeline transportation clients on a stand-alone basis, as well as part of EPC contracts undertaken by the Company.

In addition to capital projects, the Company offers its upstream infrastructure construction facilities to its clients through its management and maintenance offerings. The Company operates its fabrication services in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Alberta, Canada.

Downstream Oil & Gas

The Company provides integrated, full-service specialty construction, turnaround, repair and maintenance services, including EPC services, to the downstream energy infrastructure markets, which consists primarily of integrated oil companies, independent refineries, product terminals and petrochemical companies. The Company provides these services primarily in the United States. The Company's principal services include construction, maintenance and turnaround services for downstream facilities, including revamp/reconditioning of fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) units; tank services for construction, maintenance or repair of petroleum storage tanks, typically located at pipeline terminals and refineries; multi-disciplinary engineering services to clients in the petroleum refining, chemicals and petrochemicals and oil and gas industries, and EPC services through program management and EPC project services. The Company�� construction, maintenance and turnaround services include refractory services, furnace re-tube and revamp projects, stainless and alloy welding services and heavy rigging and equipment setting.

The Company provides services to the above-ground storage tank i! ndustry. ! The Company's capabilities include American Petroleum Institute (API) compliant tank maintenance and repair; floating roof seals; floating roof installations and repairs; secondary containment bottoms, cone roof and structure replacements, and new API compliant aboveground storage tanks. The Company provides these services as stand-alone or in combination, including EPC solutions.

The Company provides project management, engineering and material procurement services to the refining industries and government agencies, including chemical/process, mechanical, civil, structural, electrical, instrumentation/controls and environmental through its subsidiary, Wink Companies, LLC (Wink). The Company provides its engineering services through resources located at the project site or at its offices in Louisiana.

Utility T&D

The Company provides a range of services in electric and natural gases transmission and distribution, including comprehensive maintenance and construction, repair and restoration of utility infrastructure. It maintains and constructs overhead and underground transmission lines. Overhead transmission services include the installation, maintenance and repair of transmission structures involving wood, concrete, steel pole and steel lattice tower configurations. Underground transmission services include the installation and maintenance of underground transmission cable and its associated duct, conduit and manhole systems. Electric power transmission also includes substation services, which includes the maintenance, construction, expansion, calibration and testing of electric power substations and components.

The Company maintains, construct and upgrade underground and overhead electric power distribution lines to household voltage levels. The Company's services consists of electric power distribution systems, including primary and secondary voltage cables, wood and steel poles, transformers, switchgear, capacitors, underground duct, manhole syst! ems, resi! dential and commercial and electric meter installation.

The Company offers two complementary services to utilities and industrial companies for the restoration of electrical power cables and the condition assessment of electrical cable systems. It includes CableCURE and CableWISE. CableCURE is a process for the restoration of aged electric power cables. CableWISE is an online electrical system-condition assessment process that enables electric power utilities and a range of commercial and industrial facilities to evaluate the condition of cable systems, transformers and switchgear. The Company provides a spectrum of natural gas T and D services, from the maintenance and construction of large diameter transmission pipelines through the installation of residential natural gases service. The Company constructs, maintain and upgrade natural gases distribution pipelines. The Company's services include trenching, transporting, welding or fusing and laying pipe, post-construction integrity testing, site restoration and meter setting.

The Company provides other specialty services to customers nationwide. These services include utility-line locating, stray voltage and gas leak detection and telecommunications.

The Company competes with Quanta Services, MasTec, Primoris, Associated Pipeline Contractors, Sheehan Pipeline Construction, U.S. Pipeline, Welded Construction, Henkels & McCoy, Michels Corporation, North American Energy Services, Flint Energy Services, Ledcor, Sunland, Dyess, Jomax, CH2M Hill, Gulf Interstate, Universal Pegasus, Trigon, Mustang Engineering, ENGlobal, AltairStrickland, JV Industrial Companies, Plant Performance Services, KBR, Chicago Bridge & Iron, Matrix Services, MYR Group, Pike Electric and Miller Pipeline.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jeremy Bowman]

  What: Shares of Willbros Group (NYSE: WG  ) were shining today, gaining as much as 16% after the energy services firm boosted its profit estimate for the current quarter.

Top 5 Energy Stocks To Invest In 2014: ConocoPhillips(COP)

ConocoPhillips operates as an integrated energy company worldwide. The company?s Exploration and Production (E&P) segment explores for, produces, transports, and markets crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, liquefied natural gas, and natural gas liquids. Its Midstream segment gathers, processes, and markets natural gas; and fractionates and markets natural gas liquids in the United States and Trinidad. The company?s Refining and Marketing (R&M) segment purchases, refines, markets, and transports crude oil and petroleum products, such as gasolines, distillates, and aviation fuels. Its Chemicals segment manufactures and markets petrochemicals and plastics. This segment offers olefins and polyolefins, including ethylene, propylene, and other olefin products; aromatics products, such as benzene, styrene, paraxylene, and cyclohexane, as well as polystyrene and styrene-butadiene copolymers; and various specialty chemical products comprising organosulfur chemicals, solvents, catalyst s, drilling chemicals, mining chemicals, and engineering plastics and compounds. The company?s Emerging Businesses segment develops new technologies and businesses. It focuses on power generation; and technologies related to conventional and nonconventional hydrocarbon recovery, refining, alternative energy, biofuels, and the environment. This segment also offers E-Gas, a gasification technology producing high-value synthetic gas. ConocoPhillips was founded in 1917 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Claudia Assis]

  Major oil companies were mixed, with shares of Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) �down 0.2%. Shares of Chevron Corp. (CVX) �and ConocoPhillips (COP) �rose 0.3% each.

• [By Claudia Assis]

  On Thursday, Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) �and ConocoPhillips (COP) �reported results that beat analyst expectations.

Top 5 Energy Stocks To Invest In 2014: Quantum Energy Inc (QEGY)

Quantum Energy, Inc. (Quantum), incorporated on February 5, 2004, is engaged in the acquisition and exploration of oil and gas properties. As of February 28, 2010, the Company did not generate any revenues from its business operations.

The Company has acquired interests in oil and gas properties. The properties are located in the Barnett Shale area of West Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Peter Graham]

  Last Friday, small cap energy or mining stocks Yukon Gold Corporation (OTCMKTS: YGDC) and Quantum Energy Inc (OTCMKTS: QEGY) surged 323.5% and 41.2%, respectively, while 1st NRG Corp (OTCMKTS: FNRC) sank 25%. However, it should also be mentioned that two of these small cap stocks have been the subject of paid promotions. With that in mind, will these small cap energy or mining stocks deliver some more Christmas cheer this week? Here is a closer look and a reality check:

Top 5 Energy Stocks To Invest In 2014: Pioneer Natural Resources Co (PXD)

Pioneer Natural Resources Company (Pioneer),incorporated on April 4, 1997, is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States and South Africa. Pioneer is a holding company whose assets consist of direct and indirect ownership interests in, and whose business is conducted substantially through, its subsidiaries. The Company sells homogenous oil, natural gas liquid (NGL) and gas units. The Company provides administrative, financial, legal and management support to United States and South Africa subsidiaries that explore for, develop and produce proved reserves. The Company�� continuing operations are principally located in the United States in the states of Texas, Kansas, Colorado and Alaska. During February 2011, the Company completed the sale of Pioneer Natural Resources Tunisia Ltd. and Pioneer Natural Resources Anaguid Ltd. In April 2012, it acquired Carmeuse Industrial Sands (CIS). In August 2012, the Company sold its South Africa business to The Petroleum Oil and Gas Corporation of South Africa (SOC) Ltd. (PetroSA). Effective December 17, 2013, Pioneer Natural Resources Company and Pioneer Southwest Energy Partners L.P announced the completion of the merger of Pioneer Southwest Energy Partners L.P with a wholly owned subsidiary of Pioneer Natural Resources Company, with Pioneer Southwest Energy Partners L.P surviving the merger as an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Pioneer Natural Resources Company.

The Company has 15 owned drilling rigs operating in the Spraberry field, and as of December 31, 2011, had Company-owned fracture stimulation fleets totaling 250,000 horsepower supporting drilling operations in the Spraberry, Eagle Ford Shale and Barnett Shale Combo areas. The Company also owns other field service equipment, including pulling units, fracture stimulation tanks, water transport trucks, hot oilers, blowout preventers, construction equipment and fishing tools. The Company owns a 52.4% limited partner interest and a 0.1% ! general partner interest in Pioneer Southwest Energy Partners L.P. and its subsidiaries (Pioneer Southwest). The Company�� proved reserves totaled 1,063 million barrel of oil equivalent at December 31, 2011. Approximately 83% of the Company�� proved reserves at December 31, 2011 are located in the Spraberry field in the Permian Basin area, the Hugoton and West Panhandle fields in the Mid-Continent area and the Raton field in the Rocky Mountains area.

Permian Basin

The Spraberry field encompasses eight counties in West Texas. The field is approximately 150 miles long and 75 miles wide at its widest point. The oil produced is West Texas Intermediate Sweet, and the gas produced is casinghead gas with an average energy content of 1,400 British thermal unit. The oil and gas are produced primarily from four formations, the upper and lower Spraberry, the Dean and the Wolfcamp, at depths ranging from 6,700 feet to 11,300 feet. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company drilled 706 wells in the Spraberry field and its total acreage position approximated 820,000 gross acres (691,000 net acres). The Company has 44 rigs operating, of which 41 are drilling vertical wells and three are drilling horizontal wells. The Company completed its second horizontal well in the Upper/Middle Wolfcamp Shale in Upton County, Texas with a 30-stage fracture stimulation in a 5,800-foot lateral section. The Company is focusing its horizontal efforts on more than 200,000 acres in the southern part of the field to hold acreage. The Company continues to test down spacing in the Spraberry field from 40 acres to 20 acres. Sixteen 20-acre wells were drilled in 2011, with 10 of these wells having been placed on production. These 20-acre wells were drilled to the Lower Wolfcamp interval, with a few deepened to the Strawn interval.

Mid-Continent

The Hugoton field in southwest Kansas is a producing gas fields in the continental United States. The gas is produced from the Chase an! d Council! Grove formations at depths ranging from 2,700 feet to 3,000 feet. The Company�� Hugoton properties are located on approximately 284,000 gross acres (245,000 net acres), covering approximately 400 square miles. The Company has working interests in approximately 1,220 wells in the Hugoton field, approximately 1,000 of which it operates. The Company operates substantially all of the gathering and processing facilities, including the Satanta plant, which processes the production from the Hugoton field. In January 2011, the Company sold a 49% interest in the Satanta plant to an unaffiliated third party for the third party�� commitment to dedicate gas volumes to the Satanta plant. The Company is also exploring opportunities to process other gas production in the Hugoton area at the Satanta plant. By maintaining operatorship of the gathering and processing facilities, the Company is able to control the production, gathering, processing and sale of its Hugoton field gas and NGL production.

The West Panhandle properties are located in the panhandle region of Texas. These reserves are attributable to the Red Cave, Brown Dolomite, Granite Wash and fractured Granite formations at depths no greater than 3,500 feet. The Company�� gas has an average energy content of 1,365 British thermal unit and is produced from approximately 680 wells on more than 259,000 gross acres (252,000 net acres) covering over 375 square miles. The Company controls 100% of the wells, production equipment, gathering system and the Fain gas processing plant for the field.

Raton

The Raton Basin properties are located in the southeast portion of Colorado. The Company owns approximately 227,000 gross acres (201,000 net acres) in the center of the Raton Basin and produces CBM gas from the coal seams in the Vermejo and Raton formations from approximately 2,300 wells. The Company owns the majority of the well servicing and fracture stimulation equipment that it utilizes in the Raton field, allowing it to! control ! costs and insure availability.

South Texas Eagle Ford Shale and Edwards

The Company�� drilling activities in the South Texas area during 2011 were primarily focused on delineation and development of Pioneer�� substantial acreage position in the Eagle Ford Shale play. The Company drilled 94 horizontal Eagle Ford Shale wells during 2011, with average lateral lengths of approximately 5,500 feet and 13-stage fracture stimulations. EFS Midstream LLC (EFS Midstream) is obligated to construct midstream assets in the Eagle Ford Shale area. Eight of the 12 planned central gathering plants (CGPs) were completed as of December 31, 2011.

Barnett Shale

During 2011, the Company continued to increase its acreage position in the liquid-rich Barnett Shale Combo area in North Texas. In total, the Company has accumulated approximately 92,000 gross acres in the liquid-rich area of the field and has acquired approximately 340 square miles of three dimensional (3-D) seismic covering its acreage. The Company�� total lease holdings in the Barnett Shale play now approximate 142,000 gross acres (108,000 net acres). During 2011, the Company had two drilling rigs operating and drilled 44 Barnett Shale Combo wells. The Company also commenced operating a Company-owned fracture stimulation fleet in the area during the second quarter of 2011.

Alaska

The Company owns a 70% working interest and is the operator of the Oooguruk development project. The Company has drilled 12 production wells and eight injection wells of the estimated 17 production and 16 injection wells planned to develop this project.

International

During 2011, the Company�� international operations were located in Tunisia and offshore South Africa. During February 2011, the Company completed the sale of the Company�� share holdings in Pioneer Tunisia to an unaffiliated third party.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  Clearly, horizontal drilling wouldn't be viable without being combined with hydraulic fracturing. However, when done in combination, the results are absolutely game-changing. Consider the following quotes from Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE: PXD  ) CEO Scott Sheffield on the company's most recent quarterly conference call. In talking about a recent horizontally drilled well in the Permian Basin, he said: "What's interesting, in six months, it's reached 140,000 barrels of oil equivalent." What's truly mind-blowing is what he said next: "Our typical vertical well takes 30 to 35 years to produce a 140,000 on a vertical well. So we did that in six months." By simply shifting from a vertical well to one drilled horizontally, the company was able to pull forward three decades of oil and gas production.

• [By Shauna O'Brien]

  Topeka Capital reported on Monday that it is cut its rating on oil and gas company Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD).

  The firm has downgraded PXD from “Buy” to “Hold,” due to a valuation call. Topeka Capital has also lowered the company’s price target from $200 to $195. This price target suggests a 5% upside from Friday’s closing price of $184.83.

  Analyst Gabriele Sorbara commented: “Following the recent outperformance, we believe PXD is sufficiently valued on 2014/2015 EBITDA generation and relative to RNAV. While we believe PXD stands alone as the premier player with more than 700,000 net acres prospective for the Wolfcamp shale in the Midland Basin, the current valuation awards a paramount premium to the group.”

  “Further, the numerous catalyst wells with 3Q13 results add no incremental value to our RNAV and growth upside, given our production and RNAV valuation model factor in a ramp to 50 horizontal rigs in the Midland Basin by 2018 ��also presenting execution risk, in our view,” the analyst added.

  Pioneer Natural Resources shares were mostly flat during pre-market trading Monday. The stock is up 73% YTD.

• [By Robert Rapier]

  Pioneer Southwest Energy Partners (NYSE: PSE) closes out the top five MLP performers for the year with a gain of 87 percent. However, units of this Texas-based upstream MLP that owned more than 1,100 wells in the Permian Basin area are no longer available, as the partnership merged with sponsor Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE: PXD) on Dec. 17.

• [By Simon Kennedy]

  Such trends will boost the U.S. trade position by more than $164 billion in 2020 -- a third of the present shortfall -- as the need for energy imports declines and U.S.-based fuel-intensive industries become more competitive, according to a September study by Lexington, Massachusetts-based IHS Inc. EOG Resources Inc. (EOG) and Pioneer Natural Resources Co. (PXD) are among the Texas-based oil explorers whose stocks have soared this year.