3rd quarter earnings up for Murphy Oil
by October 30, 2013 7:58 pm 112 views
Pure-play exploration Murphy Oil Corp. posted third quarter net income of $284.8 million, a 25% spike from one year ago.
The El Dorado-based oil and gas explorer, which spun off its retail and refinery business on Aug. 30, saw revenue climb higher to $2.958 billion from $2.647 billion one year ago.
Company officials said higher crude oil production levels contributed to the stronger earnings.
Murphy Oil reported results from its spin-off downstream operations, Murphy USA, as discontinued operations. The results are excluded from Murphy Oil’s net income after the separation date.
Discontinued operations generated income of $32.7 million in the 2013 third quarter compared to income of $15.0 million in the 2012 quarter. Upon separation, Murphy USA Inc. paid Murphy Oil Corporation a $650 million cash dividend that was primarily used by the company to repay a portion of its long-term debt.
Also, Murphy USA is set to report its first independent quarter of results on Nov. 7.
Shares of Murphy Oil Corp. (NYSE: MUR) closed trading on Wednesday at $62.02. The company’s stock has traded between $47.26 and $63.23 per share during the past year.