Coterra Energy Reports Third-Quarter Earnings

(Reuters) – U.S. oil and gas producer Coterra Energy (NYSE:CTRA) missed Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit on Thursday due to weaker commodity prices.

Benchmark natural gas prices remained subdued during much of the quarter, affected by high storage levels and tepid demand.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects U.S. gas production to decline in 2024, the first decrease since 2020, as producers like Coterra have reduced their output after prices fell to multi-decade lows.

The company's average sales price for natural gas, excluding hedges, fell to $1.30 per thousand cubic feet (mcf) from $1.80 per mcf a year earlier. Oil prices also dropped 8.4% to $74.04 per barrel amid demand concerns.

Total production fell slightly to 669,100 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) from 670,300 boepd, with declines in natural gas output mostly offset by a 22.2% increase in oil production.

Coterra has reallocated resources to oil-heavy Permian and Anadarko basins from the largest gas-producing region, Marcellus shale, in response to the slump in natural gas prices this year.

The company raised its 2024 production forecast to a range of 660,000 to 675,000 boepd, up 1% at the midpoint compared to earlier projections, primarily due to strong oil production.

Shares rose 1.8% in after-market trade.

Coterra also forecasts oil production to grow 5% annually for the next two years but expects total equivalent production growth to be between 0% and 5% until 2026.

The company's third-quarter net income fell 22% to $252 million, compared to the same quarter last year. Adjusted profit of 32 cents per share was below market estimates of 34 cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.