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Oil Inventories Add to the Bullish Case

We have been bullish on the sector for some time, and here are our favorite names.
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The Department of Energy released the weekly oil inventories this morning, and the numbers were bullish for oil prices. Interestingly, inventories had a larger-than- expected draw in all three segments -- crude, gas and distillates. Crude oil inventories fell 4.4 million barrels, and consensus was expecting a 100,000 build; gasoline inventories had a draw of 1.5 million barrels with analysts expecting a build of 750,000; and distillates had a draw of 318,000 vs. a 1.5 million build expected.

I have been bullish on the energy sector for some time and am now 5% overweight the group relative to my benchmark. On the basis of where the stocks are trading, my order of favorites runs as follows: Chevron (CVX) , Devon (DVN) ConocoPhillips (COP) and BP (BP) . BP was upgraded today by ING and has had several endorsements recently. I am up 20% on the position (thus the low ranking) but will hold on to it for the long term because the cost-cutting initiatives will likely lead to better earnings, and the above-average yield is a big plus.

A few one-liners on two of my other holdings, Visa (V) and Abbott Labs (ABT) -- both companies are speaking at industry conferences today, and I remain positive on both positions. Visa reaffirmed its double-digit earnings guidance at William Blair's growth conference. The CFO also said that third-quarter-to-date U.S. payment volume declines are stabilizing at around 3% and that transaction volume growth is running around 8%. These comments clearly show that things are getting better. The secular growth story remains very powerful as consumers transition away from cash and checks and toward credit-card and debit-card transactions, and Visa is the best way to play it.

Abbott indicated at Goldman's health care conference that it isn't interested in doing a mega deal. This isn't a surprise, and I have written about it several times, but investors have been too stubborn to realize it. It doesn't need to do a deal because none of its major drugs are going off patent and it has a well-diversified product portfolio. It also has the highest growth rate in the industry.

Regards,

Jim Cramer

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DISCLOSURE: At the time of publication, Cramer was long ABT, BP, COP, CVX, DVN and V.