Chevron Corporation, the second-largest U.S. oil company, reported a lower quarterly profit on Friday as oil prices weakened from a year earlier, though fatter refining margins cushioned the blow.
Second-quarter net income fell to $7.2 billion, or $3.66 per share, from $7.7 billion, or $3.85 per share, in the year-ago quarter.
The company’s upstream business – oil and gas production – posted an 18 percent profit drop to $5.6 billion, while its downstream refining business saw profit jump 80 percent to $1.88 billion.
Chevron said earlier this month that industry benchmark margins on the Gulf Coast rose more than $4 per barrel to $24.89, while West Coast margins improved to $21.32 per barrel, their highest three-month average in four years.
Chevron’s largest refinery is in Mississippi, with 330,000 barrels per day of capacity, while its two California plants can together refine 518,000 bpd.
Profits at larger rival Exxon Mobil Corp fell short of expectations on Thursday as oil and gas output sagged and its chemical unit faced weak margins.
Shares in Chevron rose less than 1 percent in premarket trading.
