Pfizer (PFE) (SCCO) (WTI) (STI) (SKT) (MHK) Upgraded

Pfizer Inc (NYSE: PFE), Southern Copper Corp (NASDAQ: SCCO), W&T Offshore, Inc. (NYSE: WTI), SunTrust (NYSE: STI), Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE: SKT) and Mohawk Industries, Inc. (NYSE: MHK) were upgraded by analysts.

W&T Offshore, Inc. (WTI) was upgraded by Global Hunter Securities from a “Neutral” rating to an “Accumulate” rating. They have a price target of $30.00 on the company, up from $20.00.

SunTrust (STI) was upgraded by Citigroup (NYSE:C) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $30.00 on the company.

Southern Copper Corp. (SCCO) was upgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) from a “Neutral” rating to an “Overweight” rating.

Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (SKT) was upgraded by Hilliard Lyons from a “Neutral” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $29.00 on the company.

Pfizer Inc. (PFE) was upgraded by Standpoint Research from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $21.00 on the company.

Mohawk Industries, Inc. (MHK) was upgraded by Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) from an “Underperform” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $50.00 on the company.

Marathon (MRO) (CHK) (GEOI) (WTI) (BHI) Trade Mixed as Energy Falls

Shares of Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO), Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE:CHK), GeoResources (NASDAQ:GEOI), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) and Baker Hughes Incorporated (NYSE:BHI) traded mixed on Thursday as oil and gas were down on the day.

Benchmark crude for June delivery fell $1.63 to settle at $98.93 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Brent crude oil for July delivery was down 23 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $112.07.

June, heating oil fell 1.12 cents to settle at $2.8947 a gallon, gasoline dropped 2.95 cents to $2.926 a gallon and natural gas fell 10.5 cents to $4.161 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Linn Energy, LLC (LINE) closed Thursday at $38.35, gaining $0.33, or 0.87 percent. Lufkin Industries, Inc. (LUFK) ended the session at $85.06, up $1.81, or 2.17 percent.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK) closed Thursday at $29.91, dropping $0.04, or 0.13 percent. Marathon Oil closed at $51.92, gaining $0.39, or 0.76 percent.

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.

Shares of (PBR) (HES) (WTI) (OAS) (RRC) Close Up

Petrobras (NYSE:PBR), Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Oasis Petroleum (NYSE:OAS) and Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) all closed up on Tuesday even as energy prices were falling

Benchmark crude for June delivery dropped 47 cents to settle at $96.91 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It fell as low as $95.02 during the trading session.

Natural gas was down 3 percent, falling 13.3 cents to $4.246 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In Nymex trading in June contracts, heating oil fell 2.93 cents to settle at $2.8451 per gallon, gasoline futures were down 1.18 cents to settle at $2.9193 a gallon and natural gas declined 13.3 cents to settle at $4.246 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, Brent crude for June delivery was lower by 85 cents to settle at $109.99 on the ICE Futures exchange.

Petrobras (PBR) closed Tuesday at $34.27, gaining $0.65, or 1.93 percent.

Cameron (CAM) (WTI) (CLR) (CWEI) (BEXP) Trade Mixed as Oil Prices Rebounded

Shares of Cameron International (NYSE:CAM), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Continental Resources (NYSE:CLR), Clayton Williams Energy (NASDAQ:CWEI) and Brigham Exploration (NASDAQ:BEXP) 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.

Cameron International (CAM) closed Friday at $49.65, gaining $0.82, or 1.68 percent.

Brigham (BEXP) (WLL) (WTI) (DRQ) (HAL) Trade Positive as Oil, Gas Rise

Crude oil, natural gas and gasoline prices jumped Tuesday, pushing up the share prices of Brigham Exploration (NASDAQ:BEXP), Whiting Petroleum (NYSE:WLL), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Dril-Quip, Inc. (NYSE:DRQ) and Halliburton (NYSE:HAL).

Benchmark crude for May delivery rose $1.33 to settle at $103.88 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Heating oil jumped 3.94 cents to settle at $3.0012 a gallon. Gasoline futures climbed 10.13 cents to settle at $3.3797 a gallon, while natural gas for June delivery increased 8.7 cents to settle at $4.303 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Uncertainty remains as to the effects of the flooding along the Mississippi River could have on regional refinery operations, which could slow down gasoline production and put upward pressure on prices.

Dril-Quip, Inc. (DRQ) closed at $69.67, up $1.67, or 2.46 percent.

Carrizo (CRZO) (UPL) (WTI) (LUFK) (XOM) Trade Up as Oil Prices Rebound

Most oil and related companies performed strong Monday, as Carrizo Oil & Gas (NASDAQ:CRZO), Ultra Petroleum (NYSE:UPL), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Lufkin Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:LUFK) and Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) traded up as the price of oil rebounded.

Gastar was the only one of the list above to close down Monday.

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.

Carrizo Oil & Gas (CRZO) closed Monday at $36.51, climbing $2.24, or 6.54 percent.

Shares of (HES) (CRK) (UPL) (WTI) (OIS) 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 Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES), Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK), Ultra Petroleum (NYSE:UPL), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Oil States Intl., Inc. (NYSE:OIS), 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.

Hess Corporation (HES) closed Friday at $77.47, gaining $0.95, or 1.24 percent.

Chevron (CVX) (OAS) (RRC) (WTI) (SHI) Pressured as Oil Falls

Shares of oil and oil-related companies Chevron (NYSE:CVX), Oasis Petroleum (NYSE:OAS), Range Resources (NYSE:RRC), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) and SINOPEC Shangai Petrochemical (NYSE:SHI) 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 $3.985a 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.

Chevron (CVX) closed Thursday at $102.62, down $2.06, or 1.97 percent.

Anadarko (APC) (WTI) (BOLT) (DRQ) (LUFK) Down on Slowing Oil Demand

Oil companies and other industry-related companies W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Bolt Technology Corp. (NASDAQ:BOLT), Dril-Quip, Inc. (NYSE:DRQ), Lufkin Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:LUFK) and Anadarko (NYSE:APC) 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.

Anadarko (APC) closed Wednesday at $76.08, falling $2.43, or 3.10 percent.

Petrohawk (HK) (UPL) (WTI) (PETD) (CAM) Drop as Oil Prices Fall

Decreasing demand for fuel has pushed down oil inventories and the price of oil, putting pressure on Petrohawk Energy Corp. (NYSE:HK), Ultra Petroleum (NYSE:UPL), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), PDC Energy (NASDAQ:PETD) and Cameron International (NYSE:CAM).

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.

Cameron International (CAM) closed Tuesday at $50.79, falling $1.69, or 3.22 percent.

BP (BP) (CPE) (WLL) (WTI) (OIS) Trade Down on Volatile Day

On a volatile day for oil prices, shares of BP (NYSE:BP), Callon Petroleum (NYSE:CPE), Whiting Petroleum (NYSE:WLL), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) and Oil States Int.(NYSE:OIS) traded down 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.

BP (BP) (GEOI) (CXPO) (WTI) (OIS) Trade Mixed on Gas, Oil Price Jumps

BP (NYSE:BP), GeoResources (NASDAQ:GEOI), Crimson Exploration (NASDAQ::CXPO), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) and Oil States Intl., Inc. (NYSE:OIS) close mixed 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.

Lufkin (LUFK) (WTI) (CWEI) (SLB) (CAM) Close Mixed as Oil, Gas Rise

Lufkin Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:LUFK), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Clayton Williams Energy (NASDAQ:CWEI), Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) and Cameron International (NYSE:CAM) 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.

3M (MMM) (WTI) (AEZS) (RRC) (VDSI) Get Ratings Initiations

3M (NYSE:MMM), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Aeterna Zentaris (NASDAQ:AEZS), Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) and VASCO Data Security (NASDAQ:VDSI) had analysts initiate coverage on them.

3M (MMM) was started off with a "Buy" rating by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB), which has a price target of $110 on the company.

W&T Offshore (WTI) was started off with a rating of Equal Weight by Barclays Capital, with a price target of $26.

Aeterna Zentaris (AEZS) was initiated at a "Speculative Buy" rating by Canaccord Genuity, with a price target of $4.

Range Resources (RRC) was initiated at a "Neutral" rating by UBS (NYSE:UBS, with a price target of $55.

VASCO Data Security (NASDAQ:VDSI) was started off with a "Buy" by Dougherty & Company, which placed a price target of $15 on the firm.

Chevron (CVX) (BEXP) (VQ) (WTI) Close Mixed as Oil Settles at $112.21

Brigham Exploration (NASDAQ::BEXP), Venoco Inc. (NYSE:VQ), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) and Chevron (NYSE:CVX) closed mixed 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 rose more than 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 remain low compared with three years ago. It's currently trading at $4.38 per 1,000 cubic feet. In April 2008, natural gas contracts garnered over twice that.

Endocyte (ECYT) (UCTT) (WTI) (HSTM) (IIVI) (REDF) Make Big, Positive Moves

Endocyte, Inc., (NASDAQ: ECYT), Rediff.com India Limited (NASDAQ: REDF), Ultra Clean Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: UCTT), W&T Offshore Inc. (NYSE: WTI), Healthstream Inc. (Nasdaq: HSTM) and II-VI Inc. (Nasdaq: IIVI) were trading up positive today, soaring in a range of 15 percent to over 30 percent in the case of Endocyte, Inc.

Endocyte, Inc. was up over 30 percent after announcing its plan to prepare two marketing authorization applications to the European Medicines Agency. These two marketing applications are for the company's lead drug candidate EC145 for the treatment of platinum-resistant ovarian cancer and its companion imaging diagnostic EC20 for patient selection. The filings will be based on the results of the randomized Phase 2 PRECEDENT trial and supported by a Phase 2 single agent EC145 clinical trial.

Rediff.com India Limited was up over 23.6 percent; it introduced Rediff Deal Ho Jaye!, a service targeting group deals. Rediff.com Deal Ho Jaye! offers will come from local merchants in each city. Consumers will be empowered to track upcoming promotions by subscribing to the Deal Ho Jaye! email newsletter or by SMS.

II-VI Inc. was trading up over 21 percent; it reported third-quarter EPS of $0.72, $0.19 above the analyst estimate of $0.53. Revenue for the quarter exceeded expectationg, reaching $130 million against the consensus estimate of $121.07 million. Guidance for EPS for the fourth quarter of 2011 was $0.68 - $0.73, against the consensus of $0.57. II-VI Inc. sees fourth quarter 2011 revenue of $129 - $134 million, against the consensus of $129.52 million. Full year 2011 EPS is expected to reach $2.58 - $2.63, against the consensus of $2.29. Full year 2011 revenue is projected to reach $500 - $505 million, against the consensus of $489.63 million.

Healthstream Inc. is trading almost 19 percent up; the company reported first quarter EPS of $0.07, $0.03 above the analyst estimate of $0.04. Revenue for the quarter came in at $18.5 million against the consensus estimate of $17.68 million.

W&T Offshore Inc. is trading over 16.0 higher; it reported first quarter EPS of $0.43, $0.12 above the analyst estimate of $0.31. Revenue for the quarter reached $210.9 million against the consensus estimate of $198.59 million.

Ultra Clean Holdings Inc. jumped over 15 percent; it reported first quarter EPS of $0.25, $0.04 above the analyst estimate of $0.21. Revenue for the quarter reached $126.7 million against the consensus estimate of $121.65 million. Ultra Clean Holdings Inc. projects second quarter EPS of $0.26-$0.29, against the consensus of $0.24. For the second quarter revenue estimates are from $128-$133 million, against consensus of $125.24 million.

Valero (VLO) (WTI) (WLL) (GEOI) Close Mixed as Oil Prices Pull Back

Oil prices should keep climbing toward the highs of 2008 as growing demand isn't matched by additional supplies and the price jump has been slow to cut into consumption, as W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI), Whiting Petroleum (NYSE:WLL), GeoResources (NASDAQ::GEOI) and Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) closed mixed Monday, April 25.

The front-month Brent crude-oil futures contract, the London benchmark, pulled back from a 2½-year high of $127 a barrel on April 11, amid concerns that soaring prices are hurting demand. It settled at $123.66 a barrel on Monday, up 5.4 percent so far in April. The front-month June contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange pulled back one cent to $112.28, still up 5.2 percent this month and 23 percent in 2011.

Benchmark crude for June delivery dropped a penny to settle at $112.28 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In London, Brent crude fell 33 cents to settle at $123.66 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

In other Nymex trading, heating oil was down 1.73 cents to settle at $3.1989 a gallon and gasoline futures increased a little less than a penny to settle at $3.2785 a gallon. Natural gas dropped 2.3 cents to $4.389 per 1,000 cubic feet.

BP (BP) (HNR) (RRC) (WTI) Close Up as Oil, Gas Continue to Rise

Harvest Natural Resources (NYSE:HNR), Range Resources (NYSE:RRC), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) and BP (NYSE:BP) closed up Thursday as oil and gas prices continue to move up.

Crude oil prices climbed above $112 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday while the U.S. dollar was up after three days of faltering.

The dollar index jumped 0.14 percent to 74.10, making up a little lost ground.

May delivery crude oil rose 80 cents in New York to $112.25 a barrel. Home heating oil fell 1.85 cents to $3.2174 a gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline was up 2.93 cents to $3.2777 a gallon.

Henry Hub natural gas prices gained 11.3 cents to $4.423 per million British thermal units.

According to the AAA, the national average price of unleaded gasoline rose to $3.848 a gallon Friday from Thursday's $3.84.

BP closed Thursday at $46.03, gaining $0.12, or 0.26 percent. W&T Offshore ended the day at $22.76, rising $0.01, or 0.04 percent. Range Resources closed at $54.21, jumping $1.26, or 2.38 percent. Harvest Natural Resources closed the session at $14.53, up $0.04, or 0.28 percent.

Exxon (XOM) (WTI) (RRC) (HNR) Close Up as Oil Prices Explode

Shares of Harvest Natural Resources (NYSE:HNR), Range Resources (NYSE:RRC), W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) and Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) closed up on Wednesday as oil prices surged in response to news oil inventories unexpectedly dropped.

Oil prices exploded on Wednesday to roar above the $111 a barrel mark, as the U.S. Energy Information Administration announced oil inventories fell by 2.3 million barrels for the week ending April 15.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, May delivery for West Texas Intermediate crude rose $3.17 or 2.93 percent to reach $111.45 a barrel.

The weakness of the U.S. dollar helped boost a number of commodities, including oil, as the U.S. dollar index dropped 0.91 on Wednesday.

Home heating oil prices increased 6.29 cents to $3.2214 a gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline prices rose 4.42 cents to $3.2773 a gallon.

Henry Hub natural gas prices jumped 4.8 cents to $4.31 per million British thermal units.

The national average price of unleaded gasoline climbed to $3.837 a gallon Wednesday, up from Tuesday's $3.835, according to AAA.

Exxon Mobil closed Wednesday at $85.99, up $1.85, or 2.21 percent. W&T Offshore closed at $22.75, gaining $1.20, or 5.57 percent. Range Resources ended the trading session at $52.95, rising $0.38, or 0.72 percent. Harvest Natural Resources closed at $14.49, jumping $0.34, or 2.40 percent.