BP PLC (LSE:BP.) is the latest major oil firm to funnel soaring profits back to shareholders via share buybacks, announcing today that an additional US$2.5bn of buy-backs.
The company’s first-quarter trading update, released Tuesday, confirmed an exceptionally buoyant performance thanks to high oil prices.
At US$6.25bn, underlying first-quarter profit was more than double last year’s and was up nearly 50% on the previous three months. Operating cash flow spiked to US$8.2bn for the three-month period, up from US$6.1bn in the preceding quarter.
A massive US$24bn non-cash write-off of BP’s Russian interests changed the narrative somewhat in terms of net profitability and slightly covered the oiler’s embarrassment of riches.
“Our decision in February to exit our shareholding in Rosneft (LSE:ROSN) resulted in the material non-cash charges and headline loss we reported today,” said Bernard Looney, BP chief executive.
“But it has not changed our strategy, our financial frame, or our expectations for shareholder distributions.
“Importantly, BP continues to perform and step-by-step we are making progress executing our IEC strategy - producing resilient hydrocarbons to provide energy security while investing with discipline in the energy transition.”
BP spent US$1.6bn on share buy-backs in the first quarter (completing the programme in late April) and said it intends to buy back a further US$2.5bn before the next quarterly results.