01:38 PM EST, 03/07/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks rose Thursday afternoon with the NYSE Energy Sector Index climbing past 1% and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) adding 1.2%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector index jumped 2.1%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities index advanced 0.7%.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 0.1% to $79.20 a barrel while the global benchmark Brent crude contract gained 0.3% to $83.21 a barrel.

US natural gas stocks fell by 40 billion cubic feet in the week ended March 1, a larger drop than the 36 billion decrease expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:40 am ET and following a decrease of 96 billion cubic feet in the previous week.

Henry Hub natural gas futures dropped 4.2% to $1.85 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, Avangrid ( AGR ) shares jumped more than 12% after the company said it got a nonbinding offer of $34.25 a share to take the company private from its controlling company, Spain's Iberdrola.

Xcel Energy ( XEL ) said Thursday that its facilities were involved in an "ignition" of the Smokehouse Creek fire in Texas. Additionally, the company denied its facilities caused the ignition of the Windy Deuce fire near Fritch, Texas. Its shares were rising 1.3%.

Kodiak Gas Services ( KGS ) declined more than 6% after reporting overnight it swung to a Q4 loss.