Even if oil has trouble breaking out of a $45 to $55 a barrel trading range over the next several months, one portfolio manager argues there's still money to be made in energy — a group that has been lagging the broader market.
Tortoise Capital Advisors' Robert Thummel believes investors just need to know where to look.
Thummel, a managing director and portfolio manager at the firm, sees energy infrastructure plays thriving in this environment.
"They're agnostic to the oil price. It doesn't matter if oil is $55 or if it's $60 or if it's $50. These companies are simply charging a fee to transport product through their pipelines," Thummel said Monday on CNBC's "Trading Nation."
According to Thummel, they're pretty much insulated from oil price volatility.
"Stable oil prices are the key because that's what keeps the sector intact and in place to move higher," he added.
His top energy pick is Cheniere Energy, which has a large footprint in the development of liquefied natural gas.
Thummel bought Cheniere's stock in 2015 as it was struggling. He's still finding reasons to be bullish on it even with shares down about 3 percent in the last two years.
"Cheniere plays a pivotal role in helping the U.S. export more liquefied natural gas. They own a lot of infrastructure on the Gulf Coast that liquefies U.S.-produced natural gas, loads it onto a ship and then exports it to countries throughout the world," Thummel said.
And, he may be onto something. Cheniere shares have rallied 7 percent in the past two months.
