Not only is it expensive to pay roughly $3.50 — sometimes $4.40 — for the gallon of gasoline, it’s unnecessary. That’s because there is a simple strategy investors can use to reduce the price they pay for gasoline to $2.50 per gallon.

I know it sounds incredible and probably too good to be true, but my secret formula is shockingly easy to use and can translate into big savings at the pump.

U.S. households are projected to spend $4,200 on gasoline in 2012, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. This has a lot to do with the big surge in gasoline prices we have seen in just the past three months, with prices up a sharp 20%.

Take a look below at the rising price of gasoline.

But if gasoline cost just $2.50 per gallon, then that spending would fall 50% to roughly $2,800. And the way investors can pay $2.50 per gallon of gasoline is to hedge away exposure to rising gasoline prices by becoming partial owners of an energy company and buying energy stocks. 

Let me explain…

#-ad_banner-#Investing in energy stocks immediately places you on the other side of the energy trade, which gives gasoline consumers an opportunity to benefit from rising energy prices just like the big energy companies. At current gasoline price levels, for example, a starting $10,000 investment in an energy stock would only require a 14% return in 12 months in order to reduce the cost of gasoline to $2.50 gallon ($10,000 investment x 14% return = $1,400; $4,200 spent on gas – $1,400 return = $2,800).

And right now is the perfect time to look for big gains in energy stocks. The group has been beaten down in the past year over worries about weak global growth, in spite of record earnings and cash deposits.

This has pushed energy stocks to historically low valuations, which makes right now a great opportunity to hedge your gasoline consumption and take advantage of the long-term trend of rising energy prices.

With this in mind, here are my three favorite energy stocks that operate in different segments of the energy market:

1. Halliburton Co (NYSE: HAL)
Halliburton is one of the world’s largest energy-services companies, with a strong international presence and market cap of $31 billion. A relatively mature stock like Halliburton won’t grow like a small- or mid-cap stock, but with a strong global presence and leadingmarket share, the stock also offers more stability. The company’s stock has struggled in 2012 and is currently down 3% on the year. But this bearish movement has pushed the valuation to historically low levels. If Halliburton returned to the industry average of 14 times earnings from its current forward P/E of about 10, then shares could jump as much as 40%.

2. Stone Energy (NYSE: SGY)
This exploration and production stock with a market cap of just $1.2 billion has also struggled in 2012, with shares down 9% on the year. But once again, that has pushed Stone deep into value territory. The stock currently trades with a forward price-to-earnings ratio of just 8. If shares simply returned to the industry average of 21, then Stone would gain 160%. As an exploration and production company, Stone is more sensitive to crude and natural gas prices than service providers. Still, the stock’s valuation looks quite compelling right now.

3. Carbo Ceramics (NYSE: CRR)
Carbo provides consumable drilling materials to drilling companies. The company’s flagship product is ceramic proppant, which is a key substance used in the hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking”, process to extract natural gas. This is another energy stock that’s suffered, with shares down 49% so far this year. Some of this movement was driven by weakness in estimates, as the fracking industry suffered a fairly strong contraction on lower natural gas prices. But with shares falling more than estimates, Carbo is trading well below its traditional valuation. If shares returned to the average valuation of 23 times earnings of the past 10 years, then Carbo would gain 70% from its current forward P/E of 13.5.

Risks to Consider: Energy stocks are highly sensitive to fluctuation in economic growth. This is what has dragged the sector down during the past year. Energy stocks, particularly the ones I mentioned above, have incredible value right now and offer investors an opportunity to hedge against rising gasoline prices while also taking advantage of the long-term trend in rising energy prices.

Action to Take –> Energy stocks, particularly the ones I mentioned above, have incredible value right now and offer investors an opportunity to benefit from rising gasoline prices, while taking advantage of the long-term trend. If these energy stocks returned to their historical valuations, then a $10,000 investment could be more than enough to reduce your cost of gasoline to $2.50 per gallon.

P.S. — There is an energy crisis looming in the United States. In case you haven’t heard, in six months a major event will take place that could cause 10% of America’s electric energy supply to dry up. As the country scrambles to react, one company could shoot up by hundreds of percent. For more information on how to profit from the coming crisis, click here.