WRAPUP 3-Independent E&P cos post Q1 loss on lower prices
* Cimarex, W&T, Denbury and PetroQuest swing to Q1 loss
* Cimarex, W&T Offshore forecast lower Q2 production
* Cimarex, W&T back 2009 production view
* PetroQuest cuts lower end of '09 capex forecast range
* PetroQuest shares fall 23 pct, W&T, Denbury down 9 pct (Adds details, analysts' comments, updates share movement)
By Shradhha Sharma
BANGALORE,May 5 (Reuters) - Independent oil and natural gas companies Cimarex Energy Co (XEC.N), W&T Offshore Inc (WTI.N) and Denbury Resources Inc (DNR.N) swung to quarterly losses, hurt by writedowns and charges resulting from lower oil and gas prices.
Quarterly production at W&T and Cimarex fell and they forecast lower production for the second quarter. However, they backed their 2009 production views.
The energy sector has been hit hard by the collapse in oil and gas prices, forcing many exploration and production companies to slash spending and trim output to protect profit margins.
Commodity prices are expected to decline further, especially natural gas prices, which should fall below the $3 level, Natixis Bleichroeder anlayst Curtis Trimble said by phone.
Shares of W&T and Denbury fell 9 percent, while Cimarex shares slid 8 percent Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.
Houston-based W&T Offshore's first-quarter production dropped 31 percent to 21.4 billion cubic feet equivalent (bcfe) and it forecast lower second-quarter production.
On a conference call with analysts, the company said it had already spent about half of its current 2009 capital budget as it was drilling more in the first half of the year.
"Our activity levels will start to slow down toward the end of the second quarter," W&T said during the call.
"Looking forward, expectations should be relatively low from the company, primarily because of low drilling activity," analyst Trimble said.
Citing a slowdown in drilling activity, Cimarex forecast second-quarter production of 444 million cubic feet equivalent (mmcfe) per day to 456 million mmcfe per day, down from 488.4 mmcfe per day, a year earlier. Continued...
