Beginning next week, companies belonging to the oil-energy sector will start reporting second-quarter 2026 earnings. Per our latest Earnings Trends report, the sector is likely to have seen year-over-year earnings growth of 125.9% for the June quarter of this year, supported by the sharp increase in oil prices following the Iran conflict. With the oil-energy sector remaining the most sought-after, investors should consider the stocks Par Pacific PARR and Patterson-UTI PTEN. Before getting into details, let's first analyze the crude pricing environment in the June quarter.
High Q2 Oil Price
To have an idea of how oil prices behaved in the June quarter, let's analyze the commodity prices from the data provided by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (“EIA”). The average Cushing, OK, WTI spot prices for April, May and June of this year were $100.32 per barrel, $102.13 per barrel and $84.81 per barrel, respectively, per EIA data. Commodity prices were $63.54 per barrel, $62.17 per barrel and $68.17 per barrel, respectively, in April, May and June of 2025, according to the EIA.
Importantly, a constructive oil-price backdrop, backed by the Iran war, is expected to have aided the exploration and production businesses in the June quarter of this year. However, the high crude price is likely to have weighed on refiners in the second quarter, since they buy raw crude to produce final products.
What Lies Ahead?
West Texas Intermediate (“WTI”) oil is currently trading below $75 per barrel, according to data from Oilprice.com, significantly down from the more than $100 per barrel mark reached in May this year.
The EIA projects the WTI spot price to average $76.26 per barrel this year, a level that should remain supportive of upstream operations, as many producers have considerably lower breakeven costs. Refiners may also benefit from a more supportive operating backdrop, as crude prices remain well below their recent highs.
2 Stocks to Include in Portfolio: PARR, PTEN
Par Pacific is benefiting from a refining business that remains well-positioned in the current crude-price landscape. Although geopolitical tensions have recently supported crude prices, oil remains well below the highs seen earlier this year. The current price scenario continues to provide refiners like Par Pacific with relatively attractive feedstock costs.
Instead of relying on a single source of crude, PARR has been depending on crude from a variety of sources, comprising U.S. inland oil fields, imported oil delivered by ship and Canadian heavy crude.
Notably, a significant portion of crude oil sources is waterborne, while 22% consists of Canadian heavy oil. While exposed to multiple sources, Par Pacific has the option to switch if the price of one crude oil type rises.
Additionally, having exposure to Canadian heavy oil, which is cheaper than lighter crude, Par Pacific is likely to have been enjoying a cost advantage. In other words, the refining player has been capable of using lower-priced fuel to produce high-value end products, giving it an edge over other refiners and helping it continue its upward trajectory.
Investors should also consider the company’s upcoming earnings report. Par Pacific has not yet announced the date for the release of its second-quarter 2026 results. According to our proprietary model, a company generally needs both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) to increase the likelihood of an earnings beat. Although PARR currently carries a Zacks Rank #1, its Earnings ESP of 0.00% means that our model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat this time around. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Patterson-UTI, meanwhile,is expected to continue to gain on the prevailing crude-price scenario. This is because demand for the company’s drilling and completion services will likely remain robust, as the supportive commodity-price backdrop is expected to continue to bolster exploration and production operations. In other words, with increased exploration and production activities, upstream players will hire more drilling and completion services that will, in turn, boost the bottom line of PTEN.
Against this favorable industry backdrop, Patterson-UTI is scheduled to report quarterly earnings after the closing bell on July 29. The chances of PTEN delivering an earnings beat this time around are high as it has an Earnings ESP of +16.19% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (PTEN): Free Stock Analysis Report
Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (PARR): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).