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Occidental Petroleum
(NYSE: OXY)
Q4 2023 Earnings Call
Feb 15, 2024,
1:00 p.m. ET
Key Highlights from Earnings Call
- Company Performance and Advancements
- Operational Excellence
- Strategic Plans for 2024
Earnings Performance and Financial Overview
Occidental Petroleum (OXY), the popular energy company, recently disclosed its Q4 2023 earnings performance, demonstrating an outstanding financial performance, operational excellence, and strategic advancements. Vicki Hollub, President and CEO, presented a detailed overview of the company’s accomplishments in 2023 and the strategic plans for 2024, showcasing the company’s commitment to delivering sustainable returns for its investors.
Jordan Tanner, the Vice President of Investor Relations, began by highlighting the exceptional financial performance in 2023. The company delivered $5.5 billion in free cash flow, paving the way for $600 million in common dividend payments, $1.8 billion share repurchases, and $1.5 billion redemption of preferred shares. Despite investing $6.2 billion back into the business, the company’s financial prowess remained evident.
Additionally, the operational prowess of the company was underscored by the production exceeding the midpoint of the original guidance by 43,000 BOE per day. This was attributed to the stellar performance in both domestic and international assets.
Oxy’s year-end 2023 worldwide proved reserves increased to 4.0 billion BOE from 3.8 billion BOE in 2022, signaling a robust growth trajectory for the company. Furthermore, OxyChem achieved exceptional results, surpassing guidance and achieving $1.5 billion in pre-tax income for the third time in its history.
Record-Breaking Performance and Operational Excellence
Vicki Hollub lauded the company’s operational performance, highlighting the successful completion of the Al Hosn plant expansion in the UAE, which delivered record annual production. She expressed excitement about the company’s oil and gas segment delivering its highest quarterly production in over three years, with the Rockies business exhibiting consistent outperformance.
Moreover, the company’s innovative artificial lift technology continued to maximize base production, contributing to a 32% productivity improvement from 2022, reflecting the relentless pursuit of operational excellence.
Discussing the company’s endeavors in the Delaware and Permian Basins, Hollub showcased the company’s technological prowess in driving outstanding results. Notably, Oxy drilled eight of the top 10 horizontal wells of all time in the Delaware Basin, further bolstering its position as an industry leader.
The company’s endeavors in the Midland Basin also reaped rewards, with a one-year cumulative improvement in well productivity of over 30% compared to the prior year, underscoring the company’s technical prowess and operational sophistication.
The Road Ahead: Strategic Plans for 2024
As the company positions itself for success in 2024, Hollub emphasized the strategic capital plans, aiming to extend the company’s leadership in the New Mexico Delaware Basin. Additionally, the company’s focus on expanding horizons and improving current tier 1 intervals paints a promising picture for the future.
The company’s continued strides in other basins, such as the Powder River, underscore the diversified approach and the relentless pursuit of growth opportunities across various segments of the business.
