9 Oil and Energy Stocks to Power Your Portfolio

The energy sector hasn�t exactly been booming, as weak demand caused by the economic downturn weighs on the profits of many oil and gas picks. But make no mistake — this is a buying opportunity, and many of the best stocks continue to see good stock appreciation even in this volatile market.

I watch more than 5,000 publicly traded companies with my Portfolio Grader tool, ranking companies by a number of fundamental and quantitative measures. And this week, I�m tracking nine oil and energy stocks that are standing tall amid the turmoil.

Here they are, in alphabetical order. Each one of these stocks gets a �A� or �B� grade according to my research, meaning it is a buy or a strong buy:

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. (NYSE:COG) is an independent oil and gas stock that develops, exploits and explores natural gas properties across the U.S. This oil stock is up an incredible 92% since the start of January.

�El Paso Corp. (NYSE:EP) is an energy company that operates in the natural gas transmission and exploration and production sectors of the energy industry. Clearly the turbulent market hasn�t affected El Paso stock — it�s up 40% year to date.

Enbridge Inc. (NYSE:ENB) is an energy transportation and distribution company separated into six segments: Liquids Pipelines, Gas Distribution, Gas Pipelines, Processing and Energy Services, Sponsored Investments and Corporate. Enbridge stock has gained 13% in 2011.

EQT Corp. (NYSE:EQT) was formerly known as Equitable Resources, Inc. and is a natural gas producer in the Appalachian Basin. Potential investors might be nervous to buy in this market, but EQT is a standout buy, up 40% in 2011.

Oneok Partners (NYSE:OKS) is known for gathering, processing, storage and transportation of natural gas in the U.S. OKS has posted more modest gains than others on this list but still is up 10% year to date.

Magellan Midstream Partners (NYSE:MMP) is involved with the transportation, storage and distribution of refined petroleum products. MMP is another oil stock that has gained nearly 20% since January.

Range Resources Corp. (NYSE:RRC) is an independent natural gas and oil company that explores, develops and acquires primarily natural gas and oil properties in the U.S. This is another stock that is up big, gaining 46% year to date.

Southern Union Co. (NYSE:SUG) also is involved with the gathering, processing, transportation, storage and distribution of natural gas in the U.S. Southern Union stock has jumped 74% year to date.

Williams Partners (NYSE:WPZ) is an integrated natural gas company that is involved with exploration and production, midstream gathering and processing and interstate natural gas transportation. In the last nine-and-a-half months, WPZ stock has gained 18% since January 2011.

Get more analysis of these picks and other publicly-traded stocks with Louis Navellier�s Portfolio Grader tool, a 100% free stock-rating tool that measures both quantitative buying pressure and eight fundamental factors.