Chevron First Quarter 2023 Results

Mike Wirth, Chevron's chairman and chief executive officer, said: "We're delivering strong financial results and increasing cash returned to shareholders."

The company's return on capital employed has been greater than 12 percent for seven consecutive quarters, and the company returned $6.6 billion to shareholders in the first quarter, an increase of 65 percent from last year.

"At the same time, we're investing more to help grow future energy supplies," Wirth continued. "We intend to leverage our capital discipline, advantaged assets and financial strength to deliver lower carbon energy to our customers and superior cash distributions to our shareholders," Wirth concluded.

The company increased its dividend per share by approximately 6 percent in the first quarter and recently increased its targeted annual share repurchase rate to $17.5 billion.

Financial Highlights

• First quarter 2023 earnings increased compared to first quarter 2022 primarily due to higher margins on refined product sales, partially offset by lower upstream realizations.
• Sales and other operating revenues in first quarter 2023 were $48.8 billion, compared to $52.3 billion in the year-ago period primarily due to lower commodity prices.
• Worldwide net oil-equivalent production was down 3 percent from the year ago quarter primarily on lower international production due to the end of the Erawan concession in Thailand.
• Capex in the first three months of 2023 was up 55 percent from a year ago primarily due to higher investment in the United States.
• Free cash flow excluding working capital was lower than a year ago mainly due to higher capex. Over the past two years, the company has generated over $80 billion in cash flow from operations and over $60 billion of free cash flow.
• Total shareholder distributions were $6.6 billion during the quarter, including dividends of $2.9 billion and share repurchases of $3.75 billion (over 22 million shares repurchased during the quarter). The company expects to repurchase $4.375 billion in shares in second quarter 2023.
• The company's Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend of one dollar and fifty-one cents ($1.51) per share, payable June 12, 2023, to all holders of common stock as shown on the transfer records of the Corporation at the close of business on May 19, 2023.

Business Highlights

• Achieved first oil at the Mad Dog 2 project in the Gulf of Mexico.
• Started crude oil liftings from Venezuela, supplying 8.7 million barrels of crude oil to the U.S. during the first quarter.
• Winning bids submitted on 75 exploration blocks in Gulf of Mexico lease sale 259, subject to final government approval.
• Announced an expansion of the Bayou Bend carbon capture and sequestration project in the U.S. Gulf Coast through an acquisition of nearly 100,000 acres of pore space, positioning Bayou Bend to become one of the largest carbon storage projects in the U.S.

Downstream

• U.S. downstream earnings were higher compared to a year ago primarily due to higher margins on refined product sales, partially offset by higher operating expenses and lower earnings from the 50 percent-owned Chevron Phillips Chemical Company.
• Refinery crude oil input decreased 3 percent compared to a year ago, primarily due to planned turnaround impacts at the El Segundo, California refinery.
• Refinery product sales were up 3 percent from a year ago, primarily due to higher renewable fuel sales following the Renewable Energy Group, Inc. acquisition and higher jet fuel demand.

• International downstream earnings were higher compared to a year ago primarily due to higher margins on refined product sales, partially offset by higher operating expenses.
• Refinery crude oil input increased 1 percent from the year-ago period as refinery runs increased due to higher demand.
• Refined product sales increased 10 percent from the year-ago period, primarily due to higher demand for jet fuel as restrictions from the pandemic continue to ease.