Clean Energy Fuels (CLNE - option chain) stock is trading lower today after the company reported third-quarter earnings yesterday evening, posting a loss of $18.46 million, or 31 cents per share, on revenue of $31.18 million. Analysts had forecast a 30-cent loss per share on revenue of $34.96 million. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on CLNE.

This morning, CLNE opened at $12.25. So far today the stock has hit a high of $12.25 and a low of $11.55. As of 11:40, CLNE is trading at $11.87, down 97 cents (-7.6%). The chart for CLNE looks bearish.

The housing bubble and subsequent "Great Recession" have tarnished the stars of a good many of the world's financial wizards, such as the former heads at Lehman Bros. and Merrill Lynch. But one respected image remains -- perhaps unsurprisingly -- on top: Warren Buffett, chairman and CEO at Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK.A).

That's according to a recent quarterly poll of investors, traders, and analysts who subscribe to Bloomberg terminals, those somewhat cryptic news and data computers that are ubiquitous on Wall Street. Buffett, who received favorable nods from 25% of those participating in the poll, walked away with a plurality of the vote, Bloomberg News reported.

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says perhaps he can learn from Gov. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania, who has become a believer in the fuel.

Maybe President Obama can make the transition to natural gas that Ed Rendell just did in Pennsylvania. The transition is a simple one: Focus on jobs and many things go well; don't focus on jobs and you aren't focused on anything.

When I first heard of the Marcellus Shale from Aubrey McClendon of Chesapeake (NYSE: CHK) (Cramer's Take), I was pretty much in disbelief. How could there be so much natural gas in some place in western Pennsylvania? Too good to be true.

It looks like the battle over natural gas' price direction has only just begun.

The natural gas bears argue that U.S. stockpiles are likely to approach/surpass a record 3.545 trillion cubic feet as storage tanks and natural caverns reach capacity, due to producers who are unwilling or unable to cutback production, amid the recession.

The United States Natural Gas Fund LP (NYSE: UNG) resumed issuing new shares Monday, ending a long drought for the exchange-traded fund (ETF). UNG, which tracks price changes in natural gas, hasn't issued new creation baskets (blocks of 10,000 units) since June, thanks in part to newly enacted position limits on the federal and exchange level.

While it's back to business as usual, traders should still proceed with caution when it comes to this commodity-based fund. UNG warned late Friday that its units are still trading at a premium to its net asset value (NAV), which could spell trouble for investors.

TransCanada Corp. (NYSE: TRP), which I had placed in the high-risk category earlier this, is now a moderate-risk play, and I'm also reiterating my Buy rating for it, first recommended on May 11, 2009, at a price of $26.56.

TransCanada is a natural gas play with promise: it's a natural gas transmission and storage company that also owns oil assets and electric power generation assets (including 19 wholly-owned power plants). A solid $1.41 annual dividend adds to the positive story.

True, Schlumberger's stock has meandered in the past three months, but that's just a disguise.

Oilfield and energy services company Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB), first recommended on May 6, 2009 at a price of $56.05, remains well-positioned to benefit from the secular trend of increased oil and natural gas exploration and development.

Baxter (NYSE: BAX) is hosting an analyst day on September 16. BAX closed at $55.60. BAX September option implied volatility of 22 is near its 26-week average of 32 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK) closed at $23.09. Natural gas is recently up 1.32% to 2.844 according to Bloomberg. CHK September option implied volatility is at 45, October is at 47; below its 26-week average of 61, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Right now coal is still king. Coal provides 50% of the electricity production for the U.S. while natural gas provides about 20% of that production.

Now, however, with an energy bill in Congress, the battle lines are being drawn between the coal and natural gas companies. Each side is marshaling an army of lobbyists to descend upon Congress. Each side will make pitches to Congress to gain favor for their companies.

With the way natural gas is trending, it seems foolish for the United States to not expand its use for the nation's energy needs in the decade ahead.

True, natural gas' price, which traded Friday at $2.72 per million BTUs (MMBtu), will likely rise as natural gas demand increases with the U.S. economic recovery, but it will still probably be at least price competitive with oil. Right now, natural gas is at a decided price advantage versus oil: Oil, which is around $68 per barrel, currently is about 25 times the price of natural gas, while the historical average is about 8.4 over the past decade.

The more the price of natural gas falls, the stronger the case becomes for making the energy form a major fuel source in the U.S.'s energy future.

Further, a 'perfect storm' of new technology, producers' reluctance to cut production, and a pricing anomaly has created a new opportunity for natural gas to emerge as a dominant energy source in the United States in the decades ahead.

It's low price, about $2.71 per Million BTUs (MBtu), technological advances that have vastly increased the capturable supply in the U.S. (to about 2,075 trillion cubic feet), and most important - its status as a domestic energy source - are three strong points in favor of increased natural gas use.

The plunge in natural gas prices has hurt natural gas and related energy support plays, but just look on that as a buy opportunity, given natural gas's likely large role in the U.S.'s energy future.

Hence, I'm Reiterating my Buy rating for Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD), first recommended on April 29, 2009 at a price of $24.24.

Go figure the energy markets. Oil, which despite the U.S.'s worst recession in more than a generation, never really approached its 150-year real average of $25-30, is trading around $72 per barrel.

Meanwhile, a prime competitor, natural gas, hit a 7-year low Thursday, falling through the psychologically-significant $3 per million BTUs (MMBtu) level on rising supplies and low demand from industry and power plants.

This morning, oil firm Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) posted second-quarter earnings and a warning about North American natural gas markets. First things first, HAL reported second-quarter earnings of 30 cents per share (excluding a $12-million charge stemming from job cuts). While these results were far worse than the 55 cents per share the company earned a year ago, they still managed to top the consensus estimate by four cents per share. The situation was the same for quarterly revenue, which fell to $3.49 billion (from $4.49 billion a year ago) but still managed to outpace the Street's expectations - which called for $3.41 billion.

What's the latest craze? The iPhone? Kindle? A super-lightweight notebook pc?

All of the above are eye-openers. But one could argue that the biggest craze is the natural gas exchanged-traded fund, the United States Natural Gas Fund (NYSE: UNG).