With the proliferation of energy-oriented mutual funds over the last ten years, getting a piece of this supercharged, if highly volatile, sector has never been easier. But energy funds have been notoriously hot and cold over the years, so investors should allocate no more than 5 percent of their total portfolio to this sector.

The seemingly endless surge in energy prices is lightening wallets at gas stations, but it's also a potential bonanza for investors.

It's been a wild ride for both the dollar and oil.  When it comes to stocks, here's what the experts have to say about what they like now:

Venezuela is preparing a "windfall" oil tax to boost the OPEC nation's revenues from record crude prices, only months after leftist President Hugo Chavez's nationalization crusade forced out two of the world's largest energy companies

With the euro flexing record muscle against the dollar, Point View Financial Services president and chief investment strategist David Dietze has three ways to play:  U.S. multinationals, foreign fund investments, and commodities.

Venezuela's top oil official accused Exxon Mobil of "judicial terrorism," but said court orders won by the oil major do not amount to confiscation of $12 billion in assets.

ConocoPhillips posted higher fourth-quarter earnings, beating Wall Street expectations on record oil prices.

Stocks snapped a five-day losing streak, with the Dow surging nearly 300 points on optimism that a government plan to rescue ailing bond insurers is taking shape and could prevent billions more in credit losses.