US energy stocks slip as crude drops on Iran deal hopes

** Shares of US energy companies down premarket, tracking lower crude prices O/R

** Brent crude futures down 4% at $108.85/barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude falls 4.1% to $99.88/barrel

** Prices decline as talks between Iranian and Qatari officials on a deal to end the US-Israeli war on Iran raised hopes that Middle East supply disruptions could ease

** "We see this as being overdone, as the US is not directly involved and since they are the main protagonist to Iran, it really needs them to agree to a deal before markets can really try to price in a return to normality," Panmure Liberum analyst Ashley Kelty says

** Energy majors ExxonMobil XOM.N and Chevron CVX.N down 1.3% and 1.1%, respectively

** Oil and gas producers APA Corp APA.O, Devon Energy DVN.N, EOG Resources EOG.N, Occidental Petroleum OXY.N and Diamondback Energy FANG.O down between 1.5% and 2.2%

** Oilfield services companies Halliburton HAL.N down 1.1% and SLB SLB.N falls 0.9%

** Refiners Phillips 66 PSX.N, Marathon Petroleum MPC.N and Valero Energy VLO.N decline 0.8%, 1.1% and 1.8%, respectively