What happened Shares of oil and gas services company Core Laboratories (NYSE: CLB) jumped as much as 7.1% in trading on Wednesday as oil prices soared. But the oil stock fell late in the day and closed up just 1.2%. So what Crude oil prices rose sharply early in trading on Wednesday with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) prices up as much as 6.2% to $61.34 per barrel. At 4 p.m. EDT, WTI is still up 5.2% for the day. Image source: Getty Images. While the price of oil doesn't directly impact Core Labs' business, it's a big driver of the amount of exploration companies will do, which ultimately funnels business to Core Labs. So, when prices rise the future prospects for the oil business improve as well. At least, that's what short-term price action in the stock can indicate. Now what The reality on the ground is that oil and gas exploration is going to be harder financially for companies in coming years. Oil and gas stocks are generally down over the last few years and investment is flooding into renewable energy instead of fossil fuels. Even if commodity prices rise short-term, that lack of funding is what's going to make it tough for explorers to grow long-term, which may be why shares pulled back to end the day. 10 stocks we like better than Core LaboratoriesWhen investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the ten best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Core Laboratories wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of February 24, 2021 Travis Hoium has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Core Laboratories. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.Source