Energy stocks advanced late Thursday afternoon with the NYSE Energy Sector Index rising 0.8% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) adding 0.5%.
The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index advanced 2.5%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index fell 0.6%.
Late Wednesday, the US Central Command forces completed a "heavy wave" of strikes against Iran in response to Tuesday's attempted missile attacks on US forces, according to CENTCOM. Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted US bases in Kuwait and Jordan following Washington's strikes on Iran, Al Jazeera, a Middle East broadcaster, reported, citing the IRGC.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil shed 0.9% to $83.71 a barrel, and global benchmark Brent fell 1.8% to $89.09 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures rose 0.8% to $2.75 per 1 million BTU.
US natural gas stocks rose by 28 billion cubic feet in the week ended July 24, a smaller rise than the 35 billion cubic foot increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg and following an increase of 32 billion cubic feet in the previous week.
In corporate news, Shell (SHEL) shares gained 2.7% after the company reported Q2 results that beat consensus estimates.
Exxon Mobil (XOM), Chevron (CVX) and other big oil companies are vying for Venezuela's choicest drilling spots, but talks with Venezuelan officials have recently hit an impasse, preventing them from making big moves, The Wall Street Journal reported. Exxon shares were up 0.4%, and Chevron added 0.3%.
BP (BP) intends to cut around 700 non-frontline jobs from its global workforce, Reuters reported Thursday, citing an internal email it viewed. BP shares rose 2.1%.
GE Vernova (GEV) is investing $166 million to expand its operations in Western Pennsylvania, Governor Josh Shapiro and Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Rick Siger said Thursday. GE Vernova shares rose past 8%.
Emera (EMA) received final approval from the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission for the sale of New Mexico Gas to Bernhard Capital Partners in a $1.25 billion deal. Emera shares were up 0.2%.