- Accomplished 2023 Debt Reduction Goal of $500 Million,
- Repurchased $150 Million of Shares in Accordance With Capital Allocation Framework,
- Increased Dividend 9 Percent Annualized in 2024,
- Achieved 139 Percent Total Reserve Replacement Ratio With Preliminary Proved Reserves of 724 MMBOE
Murphy Oil announced its financial and operating results for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2023, including net income attributable to Murphy of $116 million, or $0.75 net income per diluted share. Excluding discontinued operations and other items affecting comparability between periods, adjusted net income attributable to Murphy was $140 million, or $0.90 adjusted net income per diluted share.
For full year 2023, the company recorded net income attributable to Murphy of $662 million, or $4.22 net income per diluted share. Murphy reported adjusted net income, which excludes both the results of discontinued operations and other items affecting comparability between periods, of $709 million, or $4.52 adjusted net income per diluted share.
Unless otherwise noted, the financial and operating highlights and metrics discussed in this commentary exclude noncontrolling interest (NCI). (1)
Highlights for the fourth quarter include:
- Produced 185 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (MBOEPD), with 94 thousand barrels of oil per day (MBOPD), or 51 percent oil volumes
- Retired $250 million of senior notes due 2027, 2028 and 2029 through a tender offer
- Repurchased $75 million, or 1.7 million shares, at an average price of $43.42 per share
- Named apparent high bidder on eight exploration blocks in the Gulf of Mexico Federal Lease Sale 261
- Acquired 8 percent working interest in the non-operated Zephyrus discovery in the Gulf of Mexico for $13 million after closing adjustments
- Resumed operations at the non-operated Terra Nova field in offshore Canada with production expected to ramp up through first quarter 2024
Highlights for full year 2023 include:
- Achieved $500 million debt reduction goal for 2023, resulting in $1.7 billion of total debt reduction and $84 million in annual interest expense savings since year-end 2020
- Repurchased $150 million of shares with $450 million remaining under the share repurchase authorization
- Increased quarterly cash dividend by 10 percent to $0.275 per share, or $1.10 per share annualized
- Drilled a discovery at the Longclaw #1 operated exploration well in Green Canyon 433 in the Gulf of Mexico
- Sanctioned the Lac Da Vang field development project in Vietnam
- Enhanced exploration portfolio with signing production sharing contracts for five blocks in Côte d’Ivoire
- Produced 186 MBOEPD with 98 MBOPD, or 52 percent oil volumes
- Realized 139 percent total reserve replacement with nearly 11-year reserve life and 724 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMBOE) preliminary total proved reserves at year-end 2023
- Ranked in top quartile of ISS Governance QualityScore in 2023
Subsequent to the fourth quarter:
- Announced an additional 9 percent increase of the quarterly cash dividend to $0.30 per share, or $1.20 per share annualized for 2024
'We had a strong year of production and excellent execution, generating ample free cash flow to advance our capital allocation framework. This allowed us to return $150 million to shareholders through buybacks and retire $500 million of debt, resulting in a nearly 60 percent decrease in debt since year-end 2020,' said Roger W. Jenkins, President and Chief Executive Officer. 'Our ongoing financial stewardship has given us momentum going into 2024, beginning with an increase to our longstanding dividend and restoring it to its 2016 level.'
Click here for Presentation: 2023 Fourth Quarter Earnings Conference Call & Webcast Jan 25 2024
Click here for full announcement
Source: Murphy Oil
