04:00 PM EDT, 04/09/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were lower late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index decreasing 0.5% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) falling 1%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index was up 0.2%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index climbed 1%.

In sector news, oil prices increased on Thursday as shipment activity through the Strait of Hormuz remained restricted despite a two-week ceasefire between Washington and Iran. The rebound in oil prices follows the sharpest one-day pullback since 2020 in the previous session as the US and Iran agreed to temporarily halt hostilities that had gripped the Middle East.

Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 5% to $99.24 a barrel, and the global benchmark Brent crude contract was advancing 2.5% to $97.12 a barrel.

Henry Hub natural gas futures fell 1.5% to $2.68 per 1 million BTU.

US natural gas stocks rose by 50 billion cubic feet in the week ended April 3, larger than the 48 billion increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:35 am ET and following a revised increase of 32 billion cubic feet in the previous week.

In corporate news, Kosmos Energy ( KOS ) shares dropped 8.1% after Goldman Sachs downgraded the company's stock to sell from neutral, with a $2.25 price target.

Chevron ( CVX ) expects higher commodity prices driven by the Middle East conflict to boost Q1 earnings in its upstream segment by up to $2.2 billion, though timing impacts could weigh on its bottom line. Its shares were down 1.2%.

Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) is planning an overhaul in the spring and another at the end of the year at its Beaumont refinery in Texas, Reuters reported late Wednesday. Exxon shares shed 0.8%.

Energy Vault ( NRGV ) shares gained 3% after it said Thursday it has agreed to buy a pipeline of battery energy storage system, or BESS, projects in Japan from a local company.