By TENNILLE TRACY

NEW YORK—Options traders staked out moderately bullish positions in oil and gas companies, as the energy sector lagged behind the broader market with modest gains.

Traders showed particular interest in Petrohawk Energy, adopting bullish positions in the Houston oil and gas company as its shares attempted to recoup some recent losses. Trading in Petrohawk climbed to twice the normal level, with investors picking up 31,000 calls that allow them to buy the company's stock and 3,000 puts that allow them to sell it, according to Trade Alert.

A bulk of the volume in Petrohawk took place in the session's first hour, when investors staked out "call spreads" in the company's June contracts—buying June $21 calls and then selling June $25 calls to help offset the cost. Currently priced at 90 cents, the spreads make money if Petrohawk shares climb above $21.90 before June contracts expire on June 18. The stock has lost 25% since Jan. 8 and fell 4% on Monday, after Macquarie Securities analysts downgraded the stock to "neutral," from "outperform," while also dropping their price target to $25.

The shares rose 2.4% Tuesday, however, closing at $20.02.

Petrohawk recently launched an effort to sell some of its assets, including two major fields and miscellaneous properties, and those moves could serve to strengthen the stock, said Joe Kinahan, chief derivatives strategist for TD Ameritrade. "They've sold off some of their nonperforming assets over the last few months, and they're trimming down to their core business," he said. "So the belief is that they're focusing on what they can do well, which will help the stock perform well."

Elsewhere, there was notable trading in SandRidge Energy, as investors sold June $7.50 puts, signaling confidence in the ability of SandRidge shares to stay stable in coming months. If investors are selling the contracts short—or selling them without owning them first, hoping their price will decline in coming months—then they collected 70 cents and stand to make money as long as SandRidge shares stay above $6.80 in the next few months. The stock closed at $7.78, up 1%.

In EXCO Resources, investors gravitated toward near-term bullish contracts, picking up 9,000 calls and 2,000 puts, as the company's stock rallied. The trading coincided with a presentation by EXCO Chief Executive Douglas Miller, who said the company could soon announce a joint venture to develop natural-gas properties in the Marcellus shale. Mr. Miller was speaking at the Howard Weil Energy Conference in New Orleans. Investors focused on EXCO's April $20 calls, paying 40 cents for positions that make money if the stock rises above $20.40 before April 16. The shares rose 8.3% to $18.73.

Write to Tennille Tracy at tennille.tracy@dowjones.com