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QEP Resources (QEP) Posts Narrower-than-Excepted Loss in Q4

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Domestic energy explorer, QEP Resources Inc. reported loss per share – excluding special items – of 15 cents, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 22 cents. Notably, the company had reported adjusted loss of a 1 cent per share in the year-ago quarter.

Quarterly revenues of $400 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $382 million but decreased 14.5% from the fourth-quarter 2015 level.

Volume Analysis

QEP Resources’ overall production in the quarter dipped 2% year over year to 13,675.7 million barrels of oil equivalent (Mboe). A decrease in production from the Pinedale and the Uinta Basin resulted in the downside.

Natural gas volumes declined 5% year over year to 43.9 Bcf, whereas liquid volumes improved significantly to 6,358.8 thousand barrels.

Realized Prices

QEP Resources’ average realized natural gas price in the quarter was $2.81 per thousand cubic feet, down 8% from the year-ago quarter price of $3.04. Moreover, average oil price realization decreased nearly 23% to $45.58 per barrel.

QEP Resources, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

 

Overall net realized equivalent price averaged $27.31 per billion of oil equivalent in the quarter, down 17% year over year.

Operating Expense

Total operating expenses for the quarter decreased to $436.6 million from $610.6 million a year ago.

Balance Sheet

As of Dec 31, 2016, QEP Resources had cash and cash equivalents of $443.8 million. The company’s long-term debt (including current portion) was $2,020.9 million, which represents a debt-to-capitalization ratio of 36.6%.

Guidance

QEP Resources’ 2017 production guidance lies in the range of 57.0–60.0 MMboe.

The projection for 2017 capital spending is in the $950–$1,000 million band.

Zacks Rank and Key Picks

Currently, QEP Resources carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked players from the broader energy sector include Sunrun Inc. (RUN - Free Report) , Delek Logistics Partners, L.P. (DKL - Free Report) and Ultra Petroleum Corp. . All these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

In the last four quarters, Sunrun posted an average positive earnings surprise of 134.7%.

In the second last quarter, Delek Logistics Partners posted a positive earnings surprise of 13.8%.

In the last four quarters, Ultra Petroleum posted a positive earnings surprise of 93.7%.

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