ConocoPhillips Posts $410 Million Loss
seattlepi.nwsource.com Wednesday, January 29, 2003 · Last updated 8:10 a.m. PT THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
HOUSTON -- ConocoPhillips on Wednesday swung to a fourth-quarter loss of $410 million, hindered by a $1.2 billion charge stemming from the disposition of service stations and the consolidation of refining and marketing operations between Conoco and Phillips Petroleum, whose merger was completed in August.
The loss of 60 cents per share at the nation's third-largest oil company compared with net income of $162 million, or 42 cents per share, reported by Phillips Petroleum Co. in October-December 2001.
The fourth quarter of 2002 produced the first results of ConocoPhillips as a combined company. The combined company, which completed the merger in August, compared results for the quarter to those of Phillips Petroleum in 2001. Results for 2002 included eight months of activity for Phillips and four months of activity for the combined company.
Excluding the one-time charge, the company said it earned $747 million, or $1.10 per share. On that basis, analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call expected ConocoPhillips to earn $1.11 per share.
Fourth quarter revenue was $23.6 billion, compared with $8.7 billion at Phillips in the year-ago period.
Net income for 2002 was $1.5 billion on revenue of $57.2 billion, compared with Phillips' $1.67 billion on $24.8 billion in revenue in 2001.
Jim Mulva, ConocoPhillips' president and chief executive officer, said daily petroleum production was in line with the company's target volume of 1.62 barrels-of-oil-equivalent even though production operations were shut down without incident in Venezuela because of an ongoing labor strike.
The company reduced its debt to $19.8 billion from $20.5 billion as planned.
Mulva also said first-quarter 2003 earnings likely will be down $50 million because of after-tax costs for planned maintenance at refineries, and the company could lose $30 million to $50 million per month as long as the shutdown of Venezuelan operations continues.
Shares of ConocoPhillips were up $1.29 cents to $47.20 in Wednesday morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
www.conocophillips.com