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Aug 4 (Reuters) – ConocoPhillips (COP.N) on Thursday raised its planned annual shareholder returns by $5 billion after the U.S. oil producer’s quarterly profit beat estimates on surging energy prices, sending shares up 3% in premarket trade.
Oil and gas prices have skyrocketed with Western sanctions on major producer Russia throttling supply amid a rebound in demand from pandemic lows.
Global crude benchmark Brent was trading at $96.81 a barrel on Thursday, around 25% higher this year.
Houston, Texas-based ConocoPhillips’ average realized price per barrel of oil equivalent rose 77% to $88.57 in the quarter from a year earlier. The company has not hedged any of its oil and gas sales to make the most of higher market prices, it said.
ConocoPhillips now plans to return $15 billion to shareholders this year, joining oil major Chevron Corp (CVX.N) and others in increasing payouts after years of pressure on shale drillers over low returns.
The company, which kept its spending forecast intact, slightly lowered its full-year production outlook on uncertainty in Libya.
The company’s second-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.91 per share beat Wall Street estimates of $3.80 per share, according to Refintiv IBES data.
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