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ENERGY STOCKS
Utility issues attempt a rally
By Lisa Sanders, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 10:38 AM ET Aug. 19, 2003
DALLAS (CBS.MW) - Utility issues, laid low by last week's blackout in the Northeast, attempted to stage a rally in early dealings Tuesday.
The Philadelphia Utility Index (UTY: news, chart, profile) was flat at 272.03 with the number of advancers outweighing decliners. FirstEnergy (FE: news, chart, profile), which has been blamed for the power outage, was the most active electric utility with volume of 1.1 million. The stock was off 10 cents to $27.65.
The company sought to defend itself Monday. See full story. Standard & Poor's placed FirstEnergy's "BBB" credit rating on watch for a downgrade.
The action "reflects Standard & Poor's concern that the investigations into the massive power outages in the northeastern U.S. and Canada will further distract management from executing its strategy of de-leveraging," wrote analyst Aneesh Prabhu.
Meanwhile, Ivanhoe Energy (IVAN: news, chart, profile) and Beacon Power Corp. (BCON: news, chart, profile) continued to rise on the expectation they'll benefit from the recent power crisis. See Energy Watch.
Ivanhoe jumped 14 cents, or 8.2 percent, to $1.84 on volume of 9.1 million, and Beacon surged 26 cents, or 28.2 percent, to $1.18.
Elsewhere in energy, oil service stocks rose 0.8 percent to 90.43, as reflected in the PSE Oil Service Index (OSX: news, chart, profile). The CBOE Oil Index (OIX: news, chart, profile) fell 0.2 percent to 274.12, and the Amex Natural Gas Index (XNG: news, chart, profile) was off 0.3 percent to 191.48.
In commodities trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, energy futures trading was delayed until 10:45 a.m. Eastern time, according to a Nymex spokesman. No reason was given for the late start.
Lisa Sanders is a Dallas-based reporter for CBS.MarketWatch.com. |
