BowLeven PLC (LON: BLVN), Victoria Oil & Gas plc (LON: VOG) and BP plc (LON: BP) make an oily trio on the rise today.
The FTSE 100, which closed above 6,300 for the first time yesterday, has slipped back a little to 6,333 at the time of writing, six points down on the day.
But general optimism seems to be pretty robust at the moment, and people will surely be wondering when the index of top UK stocks will beat 6,400, 6,500... and even 7,000!
But even when the index is up, there are shares that are beating it. Here are three constituents of the various FTSE indices that are rising today:
Bowleven
Bowleven (LSE: BLVN), the oil and gas explorer focused in Africa, saw its shares perk up by 8.5p (13.4%) today after releasing a drilling update from its IM-5 well, off the Cameroon coast. While investigating the Middle and Upper Isongo sands prospects, the exploratory well has found what might be a viable discovery. At a depth of 3,330 metres, initial indications suggest the presence of hydrocarbons. Determining type and quality will have to wait for further tests.
Bowleven investors needed a boost, as the share price was around 20% down over the past year before today's news.
Victoria
Victoria Oil & Gas (LSE: VOG) is another explorer and producer to rise on good news today, with its shares up 2.6% to 2.13p. Victoria's share slump has been rather more extreme, with the price having fallen by more than 40% over the past 12 months.
But today the company got a lift from an operations update that told us it now has 15 customers for the gas produced at its Logbaba operation, taking a total of 2.8 million standard cubic feet per day. We also learned that Societe Generale has agreed to a $15 million lending facility.
BP
And to keep to the oil theme, shares in BP (LSE: BP) (NYSE: BP.US) are up a modest 0.3% to 477p, which may or may not be enough to beat the FTSE at the end of the day. But the important news is that the company's legal dealings with the US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana have been concluded.
In line with the previously agreed penalty of $4bn over five years and a five-year period of probation, the court has accepted that all criminal charges concerning the Deepwater Horizon disaster have been resolved.
Finally, useful daily gains from shares can all play their part in making you your first million. But the real secret to becoming rich from shares is simple long-term investing in fundamentally sound companies, and letting steady growth and dividends power your wealth upwards.
If you don't think a million is feasible, read this free Motley Fool report and see if you change your mind. The report won't cost you a penny, so click here to have a copy delivered to your inbox while it's still available.
> Alan does not own any shares mentioned in this article.
