S&P 500 top movers: Energy stocks post impressive gains on oil rally

• S&P 500 remains on track to close second straight day higher.
• Major energy stocks surge higher on rising crude oil prices.
• Amgen Inc (AMGN: NASDAQ) shares are down more than 6%.

After gaining 1.75% on Wednesday, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) opened in the positive territory on Thursday and advanced to its highest level in nearly five weeks at 3,444. As of writing, the SPX was up 0.7% on the day at 3,442.

S&P 500 top movers

With crude oil prices rising for the fourth straight day on Thursday, major energy stocks are registering strong gains. At the moment, Occidental Petroleum Corp (OXY: NYSE), DTE Energy Co (DTE: NYSE), Halliburton Co (HAL: NYSE) and Marathon Oil Corp (MRO: NYSE) share are up between 6.7% and 4.6% on the day. Meanwhile, the barrel of West Texas Intermediate is up more than 3% at $41.25.

On the other hand, Amgen Inc (AMGN: NASDAQ) shares are down more than 6% on Thursday after the company announced that it Cytokinetics heart failure drug failed to meet the secondary goal in the late-stage study.