Traders dump energy hedges amid low hurdle for earnings

New York

INVESTORS see history repeating itself for energy companies this season, speculating that profit forecasts are again so low that there's little need to hedge against a miss.

Implied volatility on an exchange- traded fund tracking energy companies is at its lowest in 14 months versus another ETF mirroring the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The decline signals falling demand for options used to protect against losses in the shares.