Chevron Returns to Profit, but Revenue Slides
October 28 2016 - 9:50AM
Dow Jones News
Chevron Corp. said its quarterly profit plunged 35% from a year
earlier and revenue slid more than expected amid low oil prices,
though the company returned to the black after three straight
quarters of losses.
Still, earnings came in above estimates, and shares of the No. 2
energy company in the U.S. by revenue inched 0.4% higher premarket
to $10.35.
Chief Executive John Watson said third-quarter results, though
down from a year ago, improved from the first two quarters of the
year.
The company has cut capital spending and operating and
administrative expenses by more than $10 billion from the first
nine months of 2015 "as a result of a series of deliberate actions
we have taken," he said.
During the quarter, the company's average sales price per barrel
of crude oil and natural gas liquids was $37, down from $42 a year
ago.
Pressured by the prolonged swoon in oil prices cutting into
profitability, the San Ramon, Calif.-based company has looked to
cut costs. Chevron has said it would cut about 8,000 jobs—up to 12%
of its workforce—and slash billions of dollars from its
capital-spending budget to deal with market conditions.
In all for the September quarter, Chevron reported a profit of
$1.3 billion, or 68 cents a share, down from $2 billion, or $1.09 a
share, a year earlier.
Revenue slipped 12% to $30.14 billion. Analysts had projected
earnings of 37 cents a share on $30.33 billion in revenue.
Profit in Chevron's downstream, or refining, operations dropped
52% to $1.07 billion in the latest quarter.
Upstream operations, which include exploration and drilling,
meanwhile, in the U.S., saw a narrower loss at $212 million,
compared with $603 million a year ago, due to lower operating and
depreciation expenses, and lower tax items, partially offset by
lower crude oil. Mr. Watson on Friday said the company has
progressed toward lowering the cash break-even in the upstream
business.
The company also raised its quarterly dividend by a penny to
$1.08 a share—its 29th consecutive raise on the annual dividend
payout.
Also Friday, rival Exxon Mobil Corp., the largest U.S. oil
company, posted a 38% decline in quarterly profit as revenue slid
more than expected amid lower oil prices.
Write to Anne Steele at Anne.Steele@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 28, 2016 09:35 ET (13:35 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Chevron (NYSE:CVX)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Chevron (NYSE:CVX)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024