Yahoo Finance Enterprise (EPD) Beats Earnings Estimates in Q4, Revenues Miss
Enterprise Products Partners LP EPD reported fourth-quarter 2022 adjusted earnings per limited partner unit of 65 cents, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 60 cents. The bottom line improved from the year-ago quarter’s 52 cents per share.
Total quarterly revenues of $13,650 million missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $14,276 million. However, the top line increased from $11,370 million in the prior-year quarter.
Strong quarterly earnings were driven by higher contributions from the NGL, and Natural Gas Pipelines & Services businesses.
Enterprise Products Partners L.P. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Enterprise Products Partners L.P. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Enterprise Products Partners L.P. Quote
Segmental Performance
Pipeline volumes in NGL, crude oil, refined products and petrochemicals were 6.9 million barrels per day (bpd), higher than the year-ago quarter’s 6.5 million bpd. Natural gas pipeline volumes were 17.6 trillion British thermal units per day (TBtus/d), up from 14.6 TBtus/d a year ago. Also, marine terminal volumes increased to 1.7 million bpd from 1.5 million bpd.
Gross operating income at NGL Pipelines & Services increased from $1,109 million in the year-ago quarter to $1,294 million primarily due to higher NGL pipeline transportation volumes.
Natural Gas Pipelines and Services’ gross operating income increased to $315 million from $195 million in the year-ago quarter. The upside was due to an increase in natural gas pipeline transportation volumes.
Crude Oil Pipelines & Services recorded a gross operating income of $418 million, which decreased from $438 million in the prior-year quarter.
Gross operating income at Petrochemical & Refined Products Services amounted to $339 million compared with $338 million a year ago primarily due to higher average sales margins from refined products marketing activities and rising transportation revenues.
Cash Flow
Adjusted distributable cash flow was $2,028 million, up from $1,659 million a year ago. The same provided coverage of 1.9X. The partnership retained $956 million of distributable cash flow in the December-end quarter. It generated an adjusted free cash flow of $1,407 million compared with $1,403 million in the year-ago quarter.
Financials
For fourth-quarter 2022, Enterprise’s total capital investment was $763 million.
As of Dec 31, 2022, its outstanding total debt principal was $28.6 billion. Enterprise’s consolidated liquidity amounted to $4.1 billion. The total liquidity amount included unrestricted cash on hand and available borrowing capacity under its revolving credit facility.
Outlook
For 2023, Enterprise expects growth capital investments of $2.3-$2.5 billion, while sustaining capital expenditure is projected to be $400 million.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Enterprise currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Investors interested in the energy sector might look at the following companies that presently carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Liberty Energy Inc. LBRT announced fourth-quarter 2022 earnings per share of 82 cents, which handily beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 71 cents. The outperformance reflects the impact of strong execution and increased service pricing.
LBRT is expected to see an earnings surge of 61.1% in 2023. As part of its shareholder return policy, LBRT repurchased $125 million of its stock at an average price of $15.29 apiece since July and reinstated a quarterly cash dividend of 5 cents in the fourth quarter.
Halliburton Company HAL reported a fourth-quarter 2022 adjusted net income per share of 72 cents, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 67 cents. The outperformance reflects stronger-than-expected profit from both its divisions.
HAL is expected to see earnings growth of 43.7% in 2023. In more good news for investors, Halliburton raised its quarterly dividend by 33.3% to 16 cents per share (or 64 cents per share annualized).
Valero Energy Corporation VLO reported fourth-quarter 2022 adjusted earnings of $8.45 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.45 per share. The strong quarterly results were driven by increased refinery throughput volumes and a higher refining margin.
Valero can benefit from the Gulf Coast export volumes as fuel demand recovery gets support from Asia economies. The Gulf Coast contributed 59.4% to the total throughput volume in the fourth quarter of 2022.
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