Range and Other Energy Stocks Making Big Moves on November 13, 2012

The market is on the rise this morning. The Nasdaq has risen 0.2%; the S&P 500 has climbed 0.6%; and the Dow is up 0.5%. The energy sector is the category of stocks that relate to producing or supplying energy. This sector includes companies involved in the exploration and development of oil or gas reserves, oil and gas drilling, or integrated power firms. Performance in the sector is largely driven by the supply and demand for worldwide energy. Energy producers will do very well during times of high oil and gas prices, but will earn less when the value of energy drops. Furthermore, this sector is sensitive to political events, which historically have driven changes in the price of oil.

The Energy sector (XLE) is up 0.8%, outperforming the market overall. The biggest movers in the sector so far are:

Company	Market Cap	Percentage Change
Weatherford (NYSE:WFT)	$8.26 billion	-14.6%
Natural Resource (NYSE:NRP)	$1.93 billion	-5.1%
NuStar Energy (NYSE:NS)	$3.04 billion	+4.5%
Alliance Resource Partners (Nasdaq:ARLP)	$2.11 billion	-4%
Sunoco Logistics Partners (NYSE:SXL)	$4.77 billion	-3.6%
CGG Veritas (NYSE:CGV)	$4.59 billion	-3.5%
Range (NYSE:RRC)	$10.83 billion	+3.3%

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Weatherford (NYSE:WFT) is at a share price of $9.29 after a sharp decline of 14.6%. So far today, the company's volume is 27.5 million shares, 2.8 times the current three-month average.

Natural Resource (NYSE:NRP) has decreased to $17.28 per share, a 5.1% fall. The company's volume for the day so far is 470,639 shares.

NuStar Energy (NYSE:NS) has moved up 4.5% and is currently trading at $40.84 per share. At 530,100 shares, the company's volume so far today is 0.7 times the average daily volume.

Alliance Resource Partners (Nasdaq:ARLP) has fallen 4% and is currently trading at $54.91 per share. So far today, the company's volume is 109,345 shares. This is greater than yesterday's volume of 82,522 shares.

Currently trading at $44.45 per share, Sunoco Logistics Partners (NYSE:SXL) has fallen 3.6%. At 356,532 shares, the company's volume so far today is 1.8 times the average volume over the last three months.

After a decline of 3.5%, CGG Veritas (NYSE:CGV) has hit a share price of $29.15. The company is currently trading a volume of 8,000 shares.

Range (NYSE:RRC) has increased to a share price of $68.78, a 3.3% rise. The company's volume is currently 637,392 shares for the day, consistent with its current daily average.

The Bottom Line The nature of the market is such that stocks will have good days and bad days. Paying close attention to the previous ratios will help you identify key times to adjust your strategy. Tools like valuation ratios and profit margins, however, are only as useful as the context you put them in; remember to take historical data and competitor performance into account.