W&T Offshore Shares Jumped: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of W&T Offshore (NAS: WTI) rose 11% in early trading and closed above 10% as poor weather socked Mexican ports, leaving Gulf of Mexico explorers such as W&T free to charge a premium. Rising oil spot prices also appears to have created a tailwind.

So what: Interestingly, the surge came as Jefferies & Co. cut its earnings per share estimates while maintaining its "hold" rating. Peers McMoRan Exploration (NYS: MMR) and Callon Petroleum (NYS: CPE) also rallied.

Now what: W&T Offshore has been a market beater this year amid volatile oil prices and trades for a perfectly reasonable 9 times earnings. Can the rally continue? I'm asking you. Please weigh in using the comments box below.

Interested in more information about W&T Offshore? Add it to your watchlist.

At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributorTim Beyersis a member of theMotley Fool Rule Breakersstock-picking team. He didn't own shares in any of the companies mentioned in this article at the time of publication. Check out Tim'sportfolio holdingsandFoolish writings, or connect with him onGoogle+or Twitter, where he goes by@milehighfool. You can also get his insightsdelivered directly to your RSS reader.Try any of our Foolish newsletter servicesfree for 30 days. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe thatconsidering a diverse range of insightsmakes us better investors. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 - 2011 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.