Sector Snap: Big oil shares fall

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Shares of big oil companies fell Wednesday the day after Americans picked a new president who may want to impose higher taxes on the industry.

Shares also fell as oil prices slid following a big run-up Tuesday and overall decline in the stock market.

Democrat Barack Obama has said he supports a windfall profits tax on oil companies, many of which set record profits in the third quarters on sky-high oil prices that have coming tumbling down since hitting $147 a barrel in July.

Even if a windfall profit tax is not imposed, at least eight taxes and fees could be slapped on the cash-rich industry by a Democratic Congress looking for extra revenue, said Kevin Book, an energy analyst at FBR Capital Markets. They include adopting a surtax on oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico and eliminating a 2 percent tax cut included in recent legislation, Book said.

The American Petroleum Institute issued a statement Wednesday saying it stands ready to work with the president-elect and the Democratic-controlled Congress to develop a comprehensive and realistic energy policy that encourages development of all domestic energy sources.

"The American people have spoken loud and clear that they want politicians to put aside partisan bickering and get to work on meaningful energy policy that contributes to economic stability," institute President and Chief Executive Jack Gerard said in a statement.

ConocoPhillips shares fell $1.38, or 2.5 percent, to $54.35 in trading Wednesday afternoon while shares of ExxonMobil Corp. were down $2.44, or 3 percent, to $75.03. Chevron Corp. shares fell $2.07, or 2.6 percent, to $76.09 and Marathon Oil Corp. shares were off 45 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $30.42.

Solar and wind power would seem to get a boost under an Obama presidency.

Obama has proposed spending $150 billion over 10 years to speed the development of plug-in hybrid cars and "commercial-scale" renewable energy.

But stocks in several of those companies also were down Wednesday. Evergreen Solar shares fell 48 cents, or 9 percent, to $4.80 while shares of GT Solar International Inc. fell 18 cents, or 3 percent, to $5.43.

Ballot issues involving energy had mixed results.

In Missouri, voters approved a measure requiring the state's three investor-owned electric utilities to get 15 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2021. California voters defeated an even more ambitious measure that would have required the state's utilities to generate half their electricity from windmills, solar systems, geothermal reserves and other renewable sources by 2025.

In Colorado, a proposal was failing that would eliminate a credit that allows oil and gas companies to deduct property taxes from severance taxes. The change would bring in an estimated $321 million in the first year that would, among other things, help fund college scholarships.

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