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Exxon reports record Q4 profit
by : Mike Burns
Date : Tue, 01 Feb 2005 00:00:00 GMT
The world 's largest oil company, ExxonMobil Monday reported its highest-ever quarterly profit of $8.42 billion and $25.33 billion for all of 2004, in spite of slight decline in the production – thanks to the higher prices for oil and natural gas that remained steady almost throughput the year. lt;br / gt;
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The Texas-based oil giant 's profit was a 27 per cent increase form a year earlier and got a lift not only from higher crude oil prices, but also from strong results in its chemicals division and a one-time tax payment of $2.2-billion, said company officials. lt;br / gt;
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The profit amounted to 1.30 dollars a share, far ahead of the 1.07 dollars projected by analysts. Its revenue was $83.36 billion, compared with $65.95 billion a year earlier. lt;br / gt;
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“In summary, we had a very good year,” said Henry H. Hubbell, vice president of investor relations. While chairperson Lee Raymond said: “Strong operational performance in all areas of our business helped ExxonMobil capture the benefits of favorable market conditions in 2004.” lt;br / gt;
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In short, ExxonMobil fared well in all parts of its business. Earnings from exploration and production of oil and gas rose to $4.89 billion from $3.27 billion a year earlier. Profits from refining and selling products such as gasoline and jet fuel tripled to $2.34 billion from $736 million a year earlier. The chemical business also flourished, earning $1.25 billion, up from $476 million a year ago. lt;br / gt;
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Thanks to the surging demand from fast-growing Asian giants India and China, coupled with fears of a disruption in supplies from countries such as Russia, Iraq and Nigeria, kept oil prices surging for much of last year. Crude prices topped $55 a barrel in late October and averaged about $48 for the quarter, up from about $31 a year earlier. lt;br / gt;
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The impact of those prices could be seen in ExxonMobil 's increased profits despite a one per cent decline in production of oil and a two per cent drop in gas production. lt;br / gt;
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The results, however, had little effect on Exxon shares, which rose 33 cents to $51.60. The shares have been climbing for much of the past year and were already near 52-week high, analysts said. lt;br / gt;
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