Sector Update: Energy Stocks Gain Late Afternoon

03:57 PM EDT, 09/08/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were higher late Tuesday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index rising 1.4% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) up 1.3%. The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index was decreasing 0.2%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index rose 1.2%. Brent crude futures rose close to the $100 mark on Tuesday after attacks on Saudi Arabian energy facilities prompted temporary production shutdowns. Oil prices are up so far in September following two consecutive monthly gains as tensions between the US and Iran escalated. Yemen's Iran-allied Houthi group struck civilian and economic sites in Saudi Arabia, injuring 73 people, the kingdom's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday. The attacks sparked fires at several energy facilities, prompting a temporary halt to operations, the Saudi Energy Ministry. The Houthi group targeted Saudi Aramco's facilities across Abha, Najran, and Jazan, Bloomberg reported, citing the group's military spokesperson. Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 2.2% to $93.52 a barrel, and the global benchmark Brent crude contract added 1.6% to $98.59 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures fell 2% to $2.92 per 1 million BTU. In corporate news, Cenovus Energy (CVE) shares rose 2.8% after JPMorgan upgraded the stock to overweight from neutral. NextEra Energy (NEE) and the US Department of Energy, through its Office of Energy Dominance Financing, have agreed to a combined conditional commitment of up to $1.9 billion to restart the Duane Arnold Energy Center in Iowa, the company said Tuesday. NextEra shares added 0.9%. Equinor (EQNR) and Standard Lithium's (SLI) Smackover Lithium partnership said Tuesday that a preliminary economic assessment of the Franklin project in northeast Texas estimates annual production of up to 70,000 tonnes of battery-quality lithium carbonate. Equinor shares rose 2.9%. Solaris Energy Infrastructure (SEI) shares jumped past 15% after the firm said Tuesday that it now expects Q3 adjusted Ebitda of $110 million to $130 million, up from its previous guidance of $90 million to $105 million.