Devon Energy's Q3 Profit Beats Estimates
U.S. oil producer Devon Energy Corp reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit as cost savings cushioned the impact of weak oil prices.
Devon has cut its lease operating expenses, including labor and supply costs, to offset a more than 55 percent side in oil prices since mid-2014.
The company, which expects cost savings to reach $1 billion this year, said total operating expenses fell 69.4 percent in the third quarter ended Sept. 30.
Total production, net of royalties, fell 15.1 percent to 577,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d).
Devon said it expects to increase its rig activity in the United States from five rigs running in the third quarter to as many as 10 by the end of this year.
Net earnings attributable to Devon was $993 million, or $1.89 per share, in the third quarter, compared with a loss of $3.51 billion, or $8.64 per share, a year earlier.
The year-ago quarter included a non-cash, asset impairment charge of $5.85 billion.
Excluding items, it earned 9 cents per share for the latest quarter, beating the average analyst estimate of 5 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Total revenue rose 17.6 percent to $4.23 billion in the three months ended Sept. 30, boosted by a $1.35 billion gain from asset sales.
(Reporting by Arathy S Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)
