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Talisman Energy profit drops less than estimated
Talisman Energy Inc., the Canadian oil company that’s spending US$1.1 billion to develop fields off the coast of Vietnam, said first-quarter profit fell less than analysts estimated on gains related to an asset sale.
Talisman boosted its semi-annual dividend 13 percent.
Net income declined 2.4 percent to C$455 million ($377 million) from C$466 million, a year earlier, Calgary-based Talisman said Thursday in a statement. Per-share profit was unchanged at 45 cents. Excluding a gain of C$519 million from the sale of oil fields off the coast of Norway and other items, profit was C$303 million, or 30 cents a share. On that basis, the company was expected to earn 17 cents, the average of 11 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
Holders of common stock as of June 5 will receive a payment of 11.25 cents on June 30. The company last increased its dividend to 10 cents in 2007.
Production gained 7 percent to the equivalent of 450,000 barrels of oil a day, Talisman said. Maintenance hampered North Sea output a year earlier. Two-thirds of the company’s oil and natural-gas reserves are in North America and the North Sea.
“North Sea production was a little bit higher,” said Chris Theal, an analyst at Tristone Capital Inc. in Calgary who rates Talisman a “top pick” and doesn’t own the stock. “You’re seeing costs come down, particularly in the North Sea and Scandinavia. Lower operating costs are very additive to the bottom line.”
UK costs fall
Talisman said operating costs in the UK fell 27 percent due to production gains and improved efficiency.
“The first quarter exceeded our internal projections for production,” Talisman Chief Executive Officer John Manzoni said in the statement. “As usual, production in the second and third quarters will be lower due to maintenance shutdowns.”
Revenue after royalties fell 21 percent to C$1.58 billion from C$2 billion.
The company’s outlook for production to average about 430,000 barrels a day remains valid, Manzoni said. Talisman is expanding exploration in Southeast Asia to help stem declines from existing fields.
thanhnien, Bloomberg
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