03:32 PM EDT, 04/11/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were lower late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) both shedding 0.2%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index was decreasing 0.9%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index was up 0.2%.

Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil was declining 1% to $85.34 a barrel while the global benchmark Brent crude contract was decreasing 0.6% to $89.95 a barrel.

US natural gas stocks rose by 24 billion cubic feet in the week ended April 5, faster than the 13 billion cubic foot rise expected in a Bloomberg survey and following a decrease of 37 billion cubic feet in the previous week. Stocks at 2.283 trillion cubic feet are 23.5% higher than in the comparable week a year ago and 38.4% above their 5-year average.

Henry Hub natural gas futures sank 6.5% to $1.76 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, Exxon Mobil ( XOM ) Chief Executive Darren Wood's total compensation in 2023 reached $36.9 million, up from $35.9 million in the prior year, the company said in a filing Thursday. Exxon shares were shedding 0.4%.

Battalion Oil ( BATL ) shares plunged 22% after the company said Thursday it was informed that Fury Resources would fail to meet some funding deadlines for the acquisition of Battalion.

TransAlta ( TAC ) shares were down marginally. The company said Todd Stack will retire as chief financial officer. The company's board has tapped Joel E. Hunter to serve as CFO, effective July 1. Hunter is currently CFO at TC Energy ( TRP ) .

Peabody Energy ( BTU ) was shedding 0.7% after the company said that it expects to report Q1 revenue of $980 million for the quarter ended March 31, lower than Capital IQ analysts' expectation of $1.03 billion.