Phillips 66 Asset Sale, Exports Drive Profit

Energy

Published: April 30, 2014 9:00 am

Oil refiner Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) reported first-quarter 2014 earnings before markets opened Wednesday. The company reported adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.47, compared with EPS a year ago of $2.21. Quarterly revenues totaled $41.1 billion, compared with revenues of $42.27 billion in the first quarter of 2013. The consensus estimate called for EPS of $1.34 on revenues of $42.9 billion.

On a GAAP basis, Phillips 66 posted EPS of $2.67 on income of $1.57 billion, which includes a $706 million gain following the sale of wholly owned subsidiary Phillips Specialty Products Inc. to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A). Excluding that gain, the company posted net income of $866 million, compared with $1.39 billion in adjusted net income in the same quarter a year ago and $808 million in the preceding quarter.

The company did not offer guidance in its earnings release, but consensus estimates call for second-quarter EPS of $1.2.08 on revenues of $48.23 billion. For 2014, EPS is forecast at $6.98 on revenues of $182.19 billion.

The company’s CEO said:

Our Refining results were impacted by planned downtime at several of our Gulf Coast and Central Corridor refineries and tightening crude spreads.

Phillips 66 has modified its Alliance refinery to give it the capability to refine the lighter crudes that are being produced in Texas and North Dakota. The company is also expanding its capability for exporting refined products to a total of 550,000 barrels a day by 2016.

In case you are wondering about why the expansion of the company’s export facilities: the realized margin on a barrel of refined product sold in the United States during the first quarter was $1.19; for a barrel of the same stuff sold internationally Phillips 66’s margin rose to $3.72 a barrel.

Shares of Phillips 66 traded up 0.9% in Wednesday’s premarket, at $84.50 in a 52-week range of $54.80 to $84.85. The consensus target price for the shares was around $87.40 before the earnings report.

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