ASX energy stocks have been the star performers in Thursday morning trade as the sector rose 1.38% to 10,587.3 at the time of writing.
What's caused the energy surge?
Whilst the S&P/ASX200 has had a flat opening to the day, up just 0.1% to 5,852.4, the energy sector has been led higher by the likes of Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC).
The Whitehaven share price has risen 2.50% to $4.715 as it continues its bullish start to the year. The company released its December 2018 quarterly activities report last Wednesday, and after a brief decline in the last few days, appears to be back on the up. Whitehaven announced record production for the quarter, up 36% on the corresponding period in 2017, and the outlook for its flagship Maules Creek mine and Vickery Extension Project appears strong.
The energy giant did note an anticipated rise in production costs due to higher quality output and logistics expenses putting a mild dampener on the otherwise strong result. Not that investors seem to mind, as the stock has risen 10.94% since the start of the year despite coming off slightly in the last few days.
Fellow energy giant Santos' early gains this morning came on the back of its own Q4 2018 quarterly activities report for the quarter ended 30 December 2018. Santos announced a record sales result, with revenue up 7% to $1.04 billion for the quarter and a record 19% increase to $3.70 billion for the year. The company also announced success with its Cooper Basin and Moomba South exploration programs, whilst the completion of its Quadrant Energy acquisition for $1.93 billion was received positively by investors.
At the time of writing, Santos' share price was up 3.19% to $6.150 per share as it too continues a strong start to the year. Investors in the energy producer have seen shares rise 16.48% so far in January after a disappointing 27.37% decline throughout Q4 2018 to close out the year.
Foolish Takeaway
Given the consistently strong quarterly results coming out of many of the major energy players, I expect to see further short- to medium-term gains in the energy sector. For Fools seeking diversification in their portfolios, I believe now could be a good time to take advantage of last year's late declines to pick up strong growth prospects on the cheap.
