Sector Update: Energy

03:30 PM EDT, 09/17/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks advanced late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index up 0.6% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) adding 0.5%. The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index was fractionally lower, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index increased 0.8%. Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil shed 1% to $101.41 a barrel, and the global benchmark Brent crude contract fell 1.5% to $104.22 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures decreased 0.2% to $2.89 per 1 million BTU. In corporate news, HighPeak Energy (HPK) is considering a potential sale, working with investment bankers from Evercore (EVR) and Texas Capital Bancshares (TCBI) subsidiary Texas Capital Securities, Reuters reported. HighPeak shares jumped past 5%.