Linn Energy (LINE) (WTI) (BPL) (KMP) (EPD) Trade Up on Weak U.S. Dollar

Shares of oil companies Linn Energy, LLC (NASDAQ:LINE), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL), Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE:KMP) and Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD) traded higher Wednesday after a report from the Energy Information Administration saying gas inventory was up less than expected and oil inventory was flat.

Benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery was up $3.19, or 3.3 percent, to settle at $100.10 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Retail gasoline prices continued to fall, dropping almost 2 cents on Wednesday for a national average of $3.926 a gallon. Gasoline demand continues to fall in wake of high prices at the pump.

Heating oil for June increased 6.08 cents to settle at $2.9059 a gallon and gasoline futures jumped 3.62 cents to settle at $2.9555 a gallon. Natural gas gained 2 cents at $4.266 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Brent crude rose $2.31 in London, or 2.1 percent, to settle at $112.30 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the dollar against a basket of six currencies, traded at 75.438, down a little from 75.441 late Tuesday. That was also a factor in oil prices going up, as well as other commodity prices as well.

The euro traded at $1.4233, strengthening after falling to $1.4193 and up slightly from its $1.4219 close on Tuesday.

Traders bought commodities, including oil, on the weaker greenback.

Linn Energy, LLC (LINE) closed Wednesday at $38.02, gaining $0.69, or 1.85 percent.

Whiting (WLL) (OAS) (BHI) (BPL) (PTR) Trade Mixed as Oil Prices Rebounded

Shares of Whiting Petroleum (NYSE:WLL), Oasis Petroleum (NYSE:OAS), Baker Hughes Incorporated (NYSE:BHI), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL) and PetroChina (NYSE:PTR) traded mixed even as oil prices closed Friday in positive territory.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude for June delivery on Friday settled at $99.65 a barrel, up 68 cents, or 0.69 percent, after trading in a range of $97.09 to $100.70.

For the week, front-month crude climbed $2.47, or 2.5 percent.

ICE Brent for June delivery settled at $113.83 a barrel, up 85 cents, or 0.75 percent, after trading in a range of $111.72 to $114.92. The Brent crude contract for July delivery was at 66 cents, or 0.6 percent higher on Friday, at $112.99. Last week, Brent crude jumped $4.70, or 4.3 percent.

The U.S. dollar index was up 0.8 percent higher at $75.72 as the euro was down 1 percent against the dollar at $1.411. On Friday, European officials said that Greece, Ireland and Portugal's sovereign debt problems may be worse than previously believed.

NYMEX June gasoline settled at $3.0744 a gallon, up 1.05 cents, or 0.34 percent, after trading in a range of $3.0342 to $3.1388.

For the week, front-month RBOB fell 1.57 cents, or 0.5 percent.

NYMEX June heating oil closed at $2.9422 a gallon, rising 2.85 cents, or 1 percent.

Front-month heating oil for last week was up 9.65 cents.

Whiting Petroleum (WLL) closed Friday at $62.39, dropping $0.57, or 0.91 percent.

Price Targets on (ALKS) (AONE) (BBG) (BEN) (BPL) Updated

Price targets on Alkermes Inc. (NASDAQ: ALKS), A123 Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: AONE), Bill Barrett Corp (NYSE: BBG), Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE: BEN) and Buckeye Partners (NYSE: BPL) updated by analysts.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) raised their price target on Alkermes Inc. (ALKS) from $14.50 to $16.50. They have a “neutral” rating on the company.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) cut their price target on A123 Systems, Inc. (AONE) from $10.00 to $8.00. They have a “neutral” rating on the company.

Barclays Capital raised their price target on Bill Barrett Corp (BBG) from $48.00 to $53.00. They have an “overweight” rating on the company.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) raised their price target on Franklin Resources, Inc. (BEN) from $135.00 to $137.00. They have a “neutral” rating on the company.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) raised their price target on Buckeye Partners (BPL) from $66.50 to $67.00. They have a “hold” rating on the company.

Petrobras (PBR) (BPL) (HNR) (GEOI) (DVN) Trade Mixed as Oil Prices Jump

Most oil and related companies performed strong Monday, as Petrobras (NYSE:PBR), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL), Harvest Natural Resources (NYSE:HNR), GeoResources (NASDAQ:GEOI) and Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) traded up as the price of oil rebounded.

Crude oil for June delivery climbed $5.37 to settle at $102.55 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the largest one-day boost since February 22.

Brent crude for June settlement jumped $6.77, or 6.2 percent, to $115.90 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange.

Wholesale gasoline prices soared 5 percent on Monday to $3.20 a gallon on fears that refineries in Mississippi may have to shut down because of the Mississippi River flooding.

The average U.S. price of a gallon of regular gasoline Monday fell by a penny to $3.96, according to AAA.

Immediate delivery futures of Texas crude oil rose $5.53 to $102.71 a barrel. Natural gas was up 0.06 cents to $4.17 per mbtu, while gasoline prices fell 20.17 cents to 329.18 cents a gallon.

GeoResources (NASDAQ:GEOI) closed Monday at $24.89, falling $0.94, or 3.64 percent.

Ratings on (AMT) (ARE) (AXP) (BEE) (BPL) Reiterated by Analysts Today

Analysts reiterated their ratings on American Tower Corporation (NYSE: AMT), Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE: ARE), American Express (NYSE: AXP), Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: BEE) and Buckeye Partners (NYSE: BPL) today.

Piper Jaffray reiterated an “overweight” rating on American Tower Corporation (AMT). They have a price target of $57.00 on the company.

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc reiterated an “outperform” rating on Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE: ARE).

Citigroup (NYSE:C) reiterated a “buy” rating on American Express (AXP). They have a price target of $60.00 on the company.

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc reiterated an “outperform” rating on Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc. (BEE). They have a price target of $7.00 on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) reiterated a “buy” rating on Buckeye Partners (BPL). They have a price target $76.00 on the company.

Shares of (PBR) (BRY) (VQ) (BPL) (CVX) Trade Mixed as Oil Closed Down 15% Last Week

Companies exposed to oil and the industry traded mixed to end the week, as oil prices plummeted 15 percent last week, taking Petrobras (NYSE:PBR), Berry Petroleum (NYSE:BRY), Venoco Inc. (NYSE:VQ), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL), Chevron (NYSE:CVX), and others, down with it.

Light, sweet crude oil for June delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange dropped $2.62 to settle at $97.18 a barrel, matching the eight-week low of March 15. The U.S. Oil Fund (USO) closed down 1.1 percent on Friday.

For the week, the June oil futures contract fell 14.7 percent to $113.93.

Light, sweet crude for June delivery fell $2.62, or 2.6%, to close at $97.18 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In London, Brent crude finished the day off $1.67 at $109.13 per barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

Republicans went on the offensive against higher oil and gas prices by passing a bill to hasten the leasing process dragging on in the Gulf of Mexico as the Obama administration drag their feet on taking action. The bill would also require leasing to be allowed off the coast of Virginia.

According to Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas), the bill helped push down the price of oil as it sent a message to the market they're serious about the future supply.

All Obama has done so far has obsessed on the fantasy of green, clean or so-called alternative energy; a dubious matter at best, and at worst, ignoring what they country needs now and is available to it.

In other Nymex trading for June contracts, heating oil fell 4.12 cents to $2.8457 a U.S. gallon and gasoline futures were down 0.53 cents to $3.0901 a U.S. gallon. Natural gas fell 3.4 cents to $4.297 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Petrobras (PBR) closed Friday at $34.35, dropping $0.13, or 0.38 percent.

Petrohawk (HK) (EPD) (BPL) (PQ) (APA) Pressured as Oil Falls

Oil and oil-related companies Petrohawk Energy Corp. (NYSE:HK), Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL), PetroQuest Energy (NYSE:PQ) and Apache Corp (NYSE:APA) were pressured Thursday as crude for June delivery dropped below the $100 a barrel mark.

Crude oil for June delivery was down $9.44, or 8.6 percent, to $99.80 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price has fallen 12 percent so far this week, declining every day of the week. Crude has soared 25 percent over the last year.

Gasoline for May delivery was down 22.71 cents, or 6.8 percent, to $3.0954 a gallon on the Nymex, the lowest settlement in five weeks. Gasoline has jumped 39 percent in a year.

Averaged across the nation, regular gasoline at the pump increased 0.3 cent to $3.985 a gallon on Wednesday, according to the website of AAA. That's highest price of gasoline since July 24, 2008.

Heating oil for May delivery was down 25.61 cents, or 8.1 percent, to $2.8869 a gallon on the Nymex. Heating oil has climbed 32 percent over the last year.

The New York Mercantile Exchange reported that oil futures settled at $99.80, down $9.44 or 8.6 percent on Thursday.

Government figures show gasoline demand in America has dropped about 2 percent over the last month, which added to rises in inventory, should push gasoline prices down again.

PetroQuest Energy (PQ) closed Thursday at $7.74, down $0.27, or 3.37 percent.

ConocoPhillips (COP) (ROSE) (BPL) (FTI) (FTK) Trade Down on Slowing Oil Demand

Oil companies and other industry-related companies Rosetta Resources (NASDAQ:ROSE), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL), FMC Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:FTI), Flotek Industries, Inc. (NYSE:FTK) and ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) all closed down Wednesday as oil prices took a breather.

Oil prices dropped after a government report showed that inventories are growing as demand softens in the U.S. Benchmark crude for June delivery was down $1.81 to settle at $109.24 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In other NYMEX trading for June contracts, heating oil fell 4.78 cents to settle at $3.143 a gallon, gasoline futures lost 0.69 cent to $3.3225 a gallon and natural gas was lower by 9.4 cents to $4.644 per 1,000 cubic feet.

The U.S. dollar index shrunk 0.15 percent to $73.01, down from Tuesday's 73.127 close. The dollar index has fallen 7.5 percent so far in 2011.

Flotek Industries, Inc. (FTK) closed Wednesday at $8.84, falling $0.17, or 1.89 percent.

Pressure Hits (XOM) (CRK) (CXPO) (BPL) (BHI) as Oil Demand Falls

Falling demand for fuel has pushed down oil inventories and the price of oil, putting pressure on Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM), Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK), Crimson Exploration (NASDAQ:CXPO), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL) and Baker Hughes Incorporated (NYSE:BHI).

Light, sweet crude for June delivery settled down $2.47, or 2.2%, at $111.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. London Brent crude for June fell $2.67 to settle at $122.45 a barrel.

Front-month June reformulated gasoline blendstock, or RBOB, settled down $1.85 cents, or 0.6%, at $3.3294 a gallon. June heating oil lost 6.13 cents, or 1.9%, to settle at $3.1908 a gallon.

Gasoline prices on average across America have jumped to just under $4.00 a gallon, rising to $3.97 a gallon for regular gas, according to AAA.

Silver is considered the key catalyst for downward pressure on oil prices and trading, as it has become a proxy to some for risk appetite among commodity traders.

After selling out of silver commodity traders followed up with divesting of positions in oil as well.

Even so, it appears the slight strengthening of the U.S dollar played a bit role Tuesday as well.

Exxon Mobil (XOM) closed Tuesday at $85.62, falling $1.35, or 1.55 percent.

Venoco (VQ) (SWN) (BPL) (KMP) Trade Mixed on Volatile Energy Day

Shares of Venoco Inc. (NYSE:VQ), Southwestern Energy (NYSE:SWN), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL) and Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE:KMP) closed mixed on the uncertainty following the death of Osama bin Laden.

Crude futures settled lower Monday after the death of Osama bin Laden stirred up oil markets, as traders attempted to measure the impact of the event on the stability in the Middle East.

Light, sweet crude for June delivery settled 41 cents, or 0.4%, lower at $113.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, in a volatile session that saw both two-and-a-half year highs near $115 a barrel and a decline to $110.82 a barrel.

Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange closed 77 cents lower at $125.12 a barrel.

Front-month June reformulated gasoline blendstock, or RBOB, settled 5.05 cents, or 1.5 percent down at $3.3479 a gallon. June heating oil settled 2.37 cents, or 0.7 percent lower at $3.2521 a gallon.

Kinder Morgan Energy Partners closed Monday at $75.84, losing $1.48, or 1.91 percent.

PetroQuest (PQ) (BPL) (NOV) (PBR) (RDS-A) Trade Mixed on Gas, Oil Price Jumps

Shell (NYSE:RDS-A), PetroQuest Energy (NYSE:PQ), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL), National-Oilwell Varco, Inc. (NYSE:NOV) and Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) close mix Friday as oil and gasoline prices jump again.

Nymex light, sweet crude oil for June delivery rose $1.07 a barrel, to $113.93 a barrel. That's the highest close in two-a-half-years.

On Nymex, reformulated gasoline blendstock futures for May delivery expired at $3.4648 a gallon, up 3.5 cents Friday. That is the highest level since July 14, 2008. Prices have soared 23.17 cents, or 7.2 percent, over the past week.

AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report said the nationwide average price of regular gasoline was $3.909 a gallon Friday, up 6.1 cents from last week.

May heating oil expired at $3.2558 a gallon, up 2.42 cents, and the highest since April 8.

Tightening inventory and higher gasoline prices continue to push oil prices up. Another major factor, as it is with most commodities, is the ongoing collapse of the U.S. dollar. That will continue based on Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke's comments he's not going to raise interest rates.

Shell closed Friday at $77.48, falling $0.13, or 0.17 percent.

Transocean (RIG) (CRK) (CXPO) (BPL) (OIS) Close Mixed as Oil, Gas Rise

Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK), Crimson Exploration (NASDAQ::CXPO), Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL), Oil States Intl., Inc. (NYSE:OIS) and Transocean (NYSE:RIG) closed mixed as oil, gasoline and natural gas moved up in price Thursday.

Oil settled higher in volatile trading Thursday, pushed up by a collapsing U.S. dollar. After soaring to close to $114 a barrel, West Texas Intermediate crude settled up 10 cents, at $112.86, in futures trading in New York.

Brent North Sea crude oil fell 11 cents to settle at $125.02 a barrel on the Ice Futures exchange.

In futures trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas climbed 15.7 cents to settle at $4.63 per million British thermal units.

Gasoline for May delivery jumped 1.04 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $3.4298 a gallon, the highest settlement since July 14, 2008. Futures have risen 47 percent in the past year.

The Dollar Index fell to the lowest level since July 31, 2008. The index was down 0.5 percent to 73.139, its eighth straight daily decline.

Exco (XCO) (BPL) (RRC) (PETD) Close Up as Oil Settles at $112.21

Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE:BPL), Range Resources (NYSE:RRC), PDC Energy (NASDAQ::PETD) and Exco Resources Inc. (NYSE:XCO) closed up Tuesday as oil for June delivery fell below the $112.21 it settled at, as the American Petroleum Institute reported at 4:30 PM EDT that U.S. crude-oil stockpiles soared 4.91 million barrels to 361 million. Apache was the only company of the four trading in the black Tuesday.

Oil for June delivery settled at $112.21 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil has risen 33 percent in the past year.

Prices dropped from the settlement after the American Petroleum Institute reported at 4:30 p.m. that U.S. crude-oil stockpiles soared 4.91 million barrels to 361 million. June oil was down 49 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $111.79 a barrel in electronic trading at 4:32 PM EDT.

Brent crude for June settlement on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange jumped 48 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $124.14 a barrel.

The dollar fell for a sixth day against the euro, equaling the longest losing streak since May 2009. Expectations are the Federal Reserve will continue to keep measures in to allegedly support the U.S. economy.

Gasoline climbed over 53 cents a gallon from January to March as unrest in Libya threatened its oil fields and helped push oil from $91 to $107 a barrel. The national average for gasoline is closing in on $3.90 a gallon. Diesel is at about $4.14.

Oil averaged $94.64 a barrel between January and March, compared with $78.89 in the same period last year.

Natural gas prices continue to stay low in comparison to three years ago. It's now trading at $4.38 per 1,000 cubic feet. In April 2008, natural gas contracts generated over twice that.