As previously reported, Morgan Stanley analyst Drew Venker upgraded Whiting Petroleum (WLL) to Equal Weight from Underweight, citing its "vastly better fundamentals" due to stronger oil prices, well performance and management's embrace of shareholder friendly policies. However, he still sees the risk/reward for Whiting shares as balanced compared to peers. Venker, who added that fundamentals for mid-cap Exploration & Production companies more broadly are the strongest since the downturn began in 2014, called Continental Resources (CLR) his top pick in the space and sees Encana (ECA), Energen (EGN) and Cimarex Energy (XEC) as the other best ways to play the "compelling opportunity" in mid-cap E&P.