Sector Update: Energy Stocks Gain Wednesday Afternoon

01:45 PM EDT, 09/09/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Energy stocks were higher Wednesday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index rising 0.7% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) up 0.6%. The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index was easing 0.1%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index fell 1.3%. Brent crude prices crossed $100 per barrel for the first time since late July as Iran attacked 10 ships near the Strait of Hormuz, deepening the ongoing Middle East conflict. Iran said Wednesday it attacked 10 ships near the Strait of Hormuz -- a key crude and energy chokepoint, Reuters reported. Tehran reportedly launched ballistic missiles at a base used by US forces in Jordan. That followed American forces destroying five Iranian crude oil carriers in response to Tehran firing missiles twice at a US navy warship, US Central Command said Tuesday. Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 2.5% to $95.33 a barrel, and the global benchmark Brent crude contract gained 2.5% to $100.33 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures fell 3.1% to $2.83 per 1 million BTU. In corporate news, Baker Hughes (BKR) said it now expects full-year revenue of $28.50 billion to $30.30 billion, compared with prior outlook of $26.65 billion to $28.05 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect $28.03 billion. Its shares added 0.9%. BP (BP) has attracted interest from several potential buyers for its North Sea operations, Bloomberg reported. Potential suitors include Equinor (EQNR) and Shell (SHEL) joint venture Adura and TotalEnergies-backed (TTE) NEO Next+, the report said. BP shares rose 0.9%. Shell Lubricants and Faw Trucks have jointly developed a battery pack that has been successfully tested on the Shell Starship 3.0 hybrid concept truck and is ready for future use in Faw's hybrid commercial vehicles, the companies said. Shell shares were steady.