Energy stocks were lower Friday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) each shedding 0.5%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector index dropped 2.3%, while the Dow Jones US Utilities index was rising 0.4%.

Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil was declining 1.2% to $69.82 a barrel while the global benchmark Brent crude contract was dropping 1.1% to $73.61 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures slumped 3.5% to $2.27 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, Centrus Energy (LEU) shares surged nearly 24%. The company said Thursday its American Centrifuge Operating unit is one of the four firms awarded a contract from the US Department of Energy to boost domestic commercial production of uranium.

Pinnacle West Capital (PNW) shares rose 0.9% after its Arizona Public Service unit said Friday that it has been awarded $70 million in US Department of Energy grants to improve grid resilience and wildfire prevention.

SLB (SLB) shares were down 3.7% in recent Friday trading after the company's Q3 revenue missed market expectations. SLB reported Q3 non-GAAP earnings of $0.89 per diluted share, up from $0.78 a year earlier. Analysts polled by Capital IQ expected $0.88. Revenue for the quarter was $9.16 billion, up from $8.31 billion a year earlier. Analysts expected $9.3 billion.