Apache Corp. (APA) reported in-line fourth-quarter results, driven by increased volumes, particularly in its Egyptian operations. Earnings per share, excluding one-time items, came in at $1.96, the very same as the Zacks Consensus Estimate. On a year-over-year basis, Apache’s adjusted earnings per share more than doubled (from 82 cents to $1.96), while revenue was up 31.9% to $2.6 billion.
Healthy Volume Growth
The production of oil and natural gas averaged 589,799 oil-equivalent barrels per day (BOE/d) (50% liquids), up approximately 13.8% year-over-year. Oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs) production was up roughly 11.8% to 292,515 barrels per day (Bbl/d), while natural gas production increased approximately 15.9% year-over-year to 1,783.7 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d).
Realized Prices
The average realized crude oil price during the December quarter was $72.63 per barrel, representing an increase of 43.3% from the corresponding period of the previous year. The average realized natural gas price during the fourth quarter of 2009 was $4.00 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf), down 16.0% from the year-ago period.
Lease Operating Expenses
Lease operating expenses totaled $413.8 million, down 20.4% from the $520.1 reported in the year-ago quarter.
Balance Sheet
At the end of 2009, Apache had approximately $2.0 billion in cash. The company had a long-term debt of $5.0 billion, representing debt-to-capitalization ratio of 23.9%.
Outlook
We remain impressed with Apache’s solid project pipeline that provides it with a robust production-growth profile. In this regard, management said that the company is going forward with two development projects in Australia that is expected to add 40,000 barrels of oil per day to its worldwide output from the first half of 2010.
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