Eni SpA posted a second-quarter loss, missing analysts’ estimates as the Italian oil major suffered the effects of the collapse in crude prices.
The company’s adjusted net loss was 290 million euros ($321 million) compared with a profit of 505 million euros a year earlier, the company said in a statement Friday. That compares with the 78.2 million-euro average profit estimate from 13 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The company maintained its dividend at 40 euro cents a share.
“Our strategy, including the optimization initiatives and a reduced cost base, has allowed us to absorb part of the impact of a low oil price,” Chief Executive Officer Claudio Descalzi said in the statement. “We are maintaining our strong balance sheet, funding capex with our cash flow at a Brent price of $50 a barrel.”
The plunge in crude prices since the middle of 2014 has weighed on oil company earnings, forcing them to cut costs, postpone or cancel expensive projects and in some cases reduce dividends. BP Plc, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Total SA all reported sharp declines in second-quarter profit. Eni reiterated that it would cut capital expenditure by 20 percent this year, exceeding the 17 percent drop last year.
Brent averaged $47.03 a barrel in the quarter compared with $63.50 a year earlier and $35.21 in the first quarter of this year.
Production of oil and gas fell 2.2 percent from a year earlier to 1.72 million barrels of oil equivalent a day. That compares to an average forecast of 1.7 million barrels a day in eight analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Output was disrupted in Nigeria and Italy in the second quarter, while full-year output should be little changed from 2015, the company said.
Eni shares have risen 1.8 percent so far this year, compared with 6.3 percent increase for the Stoxx Europe 600 Oil and Gas Index.
Oil majors have produced a mixed set of second-quarter results, with Shell posting the lowest earnings in 11 years while Total managed to beat estimates thanks to deepening cost cuts.
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