Energy Stocks Narrowly Mixed; McMoRan Edges Away From Near 52 Week Highs After Stalled Well Saps Q4 Profit

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Referenced Stocks:FCX;MMR

Top Energy Stocks

XOM -0.3%

CVX -0.04%

COP -0.2%

SLB +3.4%

OXY -0.7%

Energy stocks are mixed with the NYSE Energy Sector Index slipping about 0.1% and the S&P Energy Index now up less than 0.1%. Crude oil for February delivery is down 32 cents to $95.17 per barrel. February natural gas is up 2 cents to $3.52 per 1 million BTU.

In company news, McMoRan Exploration Co ( MMR ) is down about about 0.3% from near 52 week highs after reporting its fourth straight quarterly loss in row.

MMR had a Q4 net loss of $0.01 per share, beating the Capital IQ consensus by $0.11. But revenues fell 31.0% year over year to $84.1 million, trailing estimates by about $3.46 million.

Much of the quarterly loss resulted from its repeated failures to unclog the Davy Jones No.1 well in the Gulf of Mexico, a delay that also prompted would-be buyer Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc ( FCX ) to last month lower its offer by 5% to $14.75 a share. FCX shares are down about less than 1%.

In other sector news,

(+) CHK, (+1.3%) Oppenheimer reduces price target by $4 to $24 to reflect lower-than-expected natural gas and NGL prices. It maintains an Outperform rating for the stock.

(+) SLB, (+3.5%) Reports Q4 earnings of $1.08 a share, ex items, matching analyst expectations. Revenue rose 1.5% to $11.17, beating forecasts by $370 million.