Murphy Oil Corp. reported a profit of $168.2 million, or 96 cents per share, for the first quarter of 2018, the El Dorado company said Wednesday.
For the first quarter of 2017, the company reported a profit of $58.4 million, or 34 cents per share.
Murphy Oil reported adjusted earnings of $39.9 million, or 23 cents per share, for the period. Analysts had projected adjusted earnings at 27 cents per share, according to figures compiled by Thomson Reuters.
Revenue for the quarter fell 13.5 percent -- from $676.6 million in 2017 to $585.6 million in this year's first quarter.
The company said it produced 168,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, meeting its projections of 164,000 to 168,000 and leading the company to increase its guidance for the rest of the year to as much as 170,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
Offshore production in the Gulf of Mexico exceeded projections, largely because of wells at Kodiak and Habanero coming back online, the company said. Onshore production in the Tupper Montney in Canada also exceeded projections, Murphy said, while wells in the Eagle Ford Shale and Midland Basin underperformed.
"Over the course of the first quarter, we had strong production results from our offshore assets" in Malaysia, the Gulf of Mexico and Canada, Roger W. Jenkins, Murphy's president and chief executive officer, said in a statement accompanying the financial report.
"We continue to maintain our key balance sheet metrics while delivering on our 2018 plans," Jenkins said. "Our diverse, high margin portfolio coupled with the recent improvement in oil prices allows Murphy to generate free cash flow above our dividend this year."
Adjusted income excludes an after-tax gain of $120 million associated with the new tax law approved by Congress in December.
Murphy Oil shares rose 19 cents to close Wednesday at $29.82. The earnings report was released after the market closed.
Murphy will host a conference call to discuss the first quarter at 10 a.m. today. The call can be accessed online at http://ir.murphyoilcorp.com or by dialing (888) 886-7786. The telephone reservation number is 18948426.
Business on 05/03/2018