Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Energy sector gains as broad market flat


Energy sector gains as broad market flat
April 2, 2008
[full article]
Energy shares posted gains across the board as crude prices rose in the face of a flat market on Wednesday.
The sector moved higher even though U.S. crude inventories increased by 7.4 million barrels, more than double the forecast of 2.8 million barrels, according to the latest weekly data.
Crude-oil futures for May delivery rose $1.27 to $102.25 barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Refinery utilization -- a key number for gasoline makers -- nudged up 0.2% to 82.36%, but was still low compared with historic levels.
While refiners have been beaten up by the rising price of crude, market forces have been shifting in their favor, with rising gasoline prices at the pump and oil cooling off from its all-time record above $110 a barrel.
The Amex Oil Index (XOI) rose 1.4% to 1,389. Repsol (REP) rose more than 4% to $37.02. Refiners Marathon (MRO) and Sunoco (SUN) each rose more than 2%.
The Philadelphia Oil Service Index ($OSX) advanced Component Smith International (SII)
rose nearly 5% to $70.23.
The Amex Natural Gas Index (XNG) rose 1.4% to 619. Southwestern Energy (SWN) advanced more than 5% to $35.63.
Among stocks in the spotlight, Nordic American Tanker Shipping (NAT) said spot market tanker rates in January rose to $45,000 per day per vessel, up from $27,000 per day in the fourth quarter. It expects first-quarter earnings and dividends "appreciably" higher than the fourth quarter, with the dividend more than $1 a share. Shares rose 7% to $30.88.
Chevron (CVX) CEO D.J. O'Reilly received $31.5 million in total compensation in 2007, about flat with his earnings of $31.6 million in 2006, according to a filing late Tuesday. Shares of Chevron rose 1% to $87.65.
Vice Chairman P.J. Robertson made about $14 million over the past two years. Chevron CFO S.J. Crowe earned $9 million in 2007, up from $6 million in 2006. Also with Chevron, the oil giant faced a recommendation in an Ecuador court that it pay $8 billion to $16 billion for environmental damages in a lawsuit over Texaco's alleged contamination in the Amazon region of Lago Agrio, according to Dow Jones Newswires. The company has denied the allegations and said it had met environmental requirements agreed upon with Petroecuador, spending about $40 million.
Sempra Energy (SRE) rose 2.4% to $55.02 after it launched a $1 billion share-repurchase program. The San Diego energy holding company said it will use the proceeds from a transaction for a commodities-marketing joint venture with Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS) to buy back shares under an accelerated program at a discount to the average trading price.
[full article]
amex oil index

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Repsol, S.A.

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marathon oil corp

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sunoco inc

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Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index

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Smith International, Inc

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posted by Victor Lloyd Smith @ 3:42 PM

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