Stocks To Trade
Apr. 7, 202212 min read

Top 10 Oil Penny Stocks to Watch

Tim BohenAvatar
Written by Tim Bohen

Oil penny stocks are having an awesome 2022.

If you’ve been watching this sector since 2020, this may have come as a surprise. During the stay-at-home era, oil prices actually went below $0 per barrel. That means that some traders were paying buyers to take their oil!

Global events affected the price of oil again in February 2022. This time, the price of oil shot up to its highest price since 2008. It’s still over $100 per barrel. With Europe weaning itself off Russian oil dependence, this change might be lasting.

Or green energy could step into the void, and cure our oil dependence permanently! I don’t know. This is why it’s best to react to the market — never try to predict what will happen.

First, let’s review some history…

Oil Is One of 2022’s Hottest Sectors

When Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, experts saw a gas stock spike coming…

I don’t mean to reduce the war to a stock catalyst. It’s been one of the worst things to happen in 2022. My heart goes out to anyone who has been affected by these horrible events.

No one likes the fear that comes with war or anything that hurts others. But in our niche, fear creates opportunity.

Gas prices had been on the rise in 2021. The value of real gas stocks like Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) had been rising too…

But crappy oil penny stocks didn’t start moving until Russia invaded Ukraine. Take a look at the bump former penny stock Indonesia Energy Corp. Ltd. (AMEX: INDO) got in February.

What’s the difference between these two companies? In 2021, Chevron produced over 1.8 million barrels of oil and natural gas per day. INDO produced 9,900 barrels of oil per month in 2018.

CVX trades on value, while INDO trades on speculation. This speculation can create great volatility.

At the time of this writing, we’re more than a month into the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The oil stocks that ran in early March have fallen back to earth. But I don’t think the oil run is over.

Sanctions continue to threaten the Russian oil sector. Even if the war ends soon, some of the economic changes may be permanent.

That’s why I’ll continue to watch this sector. You never know when some big news will cause oil penny stocks to run again.

Why You Need to Keep a Watchlist

At the start of the Russian invasion, everybody was talking about oil. The big moves that major oil producers made that month didn’t catch anyone by surprise.

30% moves like the one that Chevron made are great for long-term investors…

Traders like us were more excited by the 1,800% move that INDO made in late February and early March.

One month later, the biggest gainers of this hot sector have mostly come back down…

That doesn’t matter to traders with plans. If you follow the SteadyTrade Team rules, you aren’t still holding these stocks. You set reasonable goals and bail on trades that dip past your risk.

What matters to us is that these stocks have run in the past…

That means they can run again.

Smart traders don’t try to predict when or if that will happen. What they do is keep watching these stocks. That way they’re prepared for moves that might catch the rest of the market by surprise.

Sign up for my weekly watchlist here to see the stocks I’m watching!

How to Scan for Hot Oil Penny Stocks

How do you react to the market in real time? You need a top-line stock screener like StocksToTrade.

StocksToTrade has the basic tools you need to see when a low-float oil penny stock is setting up for a trade…

Its stock screener was designed by active day traders, and its charts are second to none. Its news scanner makes keeping on top of catalysts easy…

There’s the Breaking News Chat add-on to stack the deck even more in your favor!

StocksToTrade has been extra valuable for oil penny stock traders…

Our Oracle algorithm tool helps subscribers find oil penny stock runners like INDO and Imperial Petroleum Inc. (NASDAQ: IMPP).

It picked up INDO on February 28, when it was trading at $8.45. Over the next nine days, it reached a high of $86.99!

Oracle caught IMPP even earlier. It alerted this penny stock on February 22 when it was trading below 78 cents. Two weeks later it reached a high of $9.70!

I don’t mean to give you FOMO. I just want to demonstrate what a powerful tool StocksToTrade is.

Get StocksToTrade on your side before the next oil run — only $7 for the first 14 days.

The Top 10 Oil Penny Stocks to Watch in 2022

Oil penny stocks had a wild late-February/early March. They mostly ran in sympathy to the bigger money stocks like Chevron.

Some, like INDO and IMPP, took on lives of their own.

Like I said before, I don’t think that the oil sector is going to cool down anytime soon. The war is still raging, and deeper sanctions are on the table. What if Europe finally stops buying Russian oil?

We might start seeing a lot more oil penny stock news soon!

Houston American Energy Corporation (AMEX: HUSA)

HUSA is one of the oil penny stocks I spotlighted in StocksToTrade Advisory’s March newsletter.

HUSA is an oil and gas exploration and production company with claims in Texas and Louisiana. As far as I can tell, it’s not pumping much oil from those claims. Its website points to “significant potential upside and near-term cash flow.”

Remember: don’t believe a word any penny stock company says. What you can believe in is the price action. Its volume saw occasional spikes through the rest of March. Some were big enough to send this 10 million share low-floater on a full rotation.

Before March 7, it had been pretty steady in the $1.50 range. It ran as high as $16.61 and has held onto some gains. This is one to follow during the next oil surge.

Enservco Corporation (NYSE: ENSV)

ENSV is a service provider to the oil and gas industry. It was also one of the stars of March’s hot oil sector.

Take a look at Small Cap Rockets trader Bryce Tuohey breaking ENSV’s action in a cowboy hat.

That cowboy hat was appropriate … ENSV made for a wild ride in early March! And I like Bryce’s strategy for trading this low floater, keeping a tight risk.

Keep this stock on your radar. The market has a memory. When oil heats up again, odds are that ENSV will lead the way.

Imperial Petroleum Inc. (NASDAQ: IMPP)

While we’re talking about stocks with memory, let’s spare a moment for IMPP. IMPP is a shipping company headquartered in Greece that specializes in oil and gas transportation.

It was also one of the biggest gainers of early March.

It didn’t come as much of a surprise. Here it is on my March 6 watchlist:

IMPP isn’t technically a low-float stock. It averaged nearly 40 million shares traded per day in February and March. That doesn’t include its late-January run, where it closed nearly 100% up.

I also like the complete collapses IMPP has had. This type of volatility made it ideal for one of my favorite short setups. Here is how it could have worked on February 23:

This stock could once again lead the oil penny stock sector.

Nine Energy Service Inc. (NYSE: NINE)

NINE had only one big spike during this oil run…

It ran all the way from the low-$1s to $8.10. That’s enough to keep it on the watchlists of many traders.

NINE is a Texas company that helps build oil wells. It’s a real company with international operations that’s been hit hard by the stay-at-home era.

It held onto some of the gains it made during its March run. Take a look at that chart. It doesn’t look like a one-and-done to me.

U.S. Well Services Inc. (NASDAQ: USWS)

This oil penny stock is a fracking services provider located in Texas.

It last showed up on my March Robinhood penny stocks watchlist…

It made a big March 8 run but didn’t hold onto any of its gains. With a float of over 41 million, it takes a lot of volume to move this stock…

Its volume exceeded the float twice in March.

USWS has been hit hard by the pandemic. Its financials aren’t exactly inspiring.

That might be good news for penny stock traders, looking for a cheap way to play a hot market.

Evolve Transition Infrastructure LP (AMEX: SNMP)

Speaking about cheap ways to play a hot market — let’s talk about SNMP.

SNMP is active in the midstream and production segments. It’s had a rocky past couple of years. Its February–March spike sent its value up nearly 300%.

It has a small enough float and share price that it might move again.

Abraxas Petroleum Corporation (OTCQX: AXAS) 

AXAS is another oil company that’s all upside…

According to its latest report, it has $229 million in ‘proved reserves.’ That refers to the sale price of the oil that’s just waiting to be produced.

I’m more interested in its share value production. AXAS’s March chart looks similar to many others on this list.

What makes AXAS different is its pre-March runs. If it ran before, it can run again.

TransGlobe Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: TGA)

TGA is a Canadian exploration, development, and production company. Its properties are all located in Egypt, whose oil production is rising. The country is the largest non-OPEC oil producer in Africa.

TGA hasn’t experienced the same dip in revenue as other companies in the sector. Its value has been steadily rising since the end of 2020.

It didn’t quite catch the March run that buoyed the rest of the sector. But I like the fact that it doesn’t have the same chart as the rest of these stocks. One unexpected shift in world politics could cause this stock to move.

New Concept Energy Inc. (AMEX: GBR)

GBR is active in oil and gas drilling and exploration in the northeastern U.S. and Canada.

It had a nice March spike, but that’s not what makes this stock special.

Look back at January 2021. Back then it was considered a meme stock. It jumped from the $2s to $30 before sagging back down.

Over the following months, it bounced around a lot. It ended 2021 on a long fade…

Who knows, a hot oil sector might revive it!

KLX Energy Services Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: KLXE)

KLXE provides oilfield services to more than 40 facilities throughout the U.S.

It’s also been on a long fade since its pre-penny-stock days. It was one of March’s big runners. With a float under 10 million, I’m surprised it didn’t run more.

I’ve been watching this stock since 2020. It hasn’t popped like I would have liked, but it still has time.

Conclusion

There isn’t much we can count on these days…

Which means there’s opportunity for smart traders — as long as you stay disciplined.

None of the stocks on this list are sure things. We don’t need them to be to trade them.

Keeping solid watchlists is an essential part of being prepared. And when you’re prepared, you can trade in any market.

What do you think of the oil penny stocks on this watchlist? Were you prepared the last time the sector heated up? Let me know in the comments!