1318 GMT - BP is among the most mentioned companies across news items over the past six hours, according to Factiva data, after the British energy company booked a slump in first-quarter profit and said it will cut at least $2 billion in costs. The London-based company attributed the decline to lower prices received for oil and gas sold, an unplanned outage at the Whiting oil refinery in Indiana and significantly lower fuels margins. Its underlying replacement-cost profit--a metric similar to net income its U.S. peers report--was $2.72 billion, down from $4.96 billion in the same quarter last year, missing a forecast of $2.87 billion, according to a company-compiled estimate from analysts. The company also said it would cut at least $2 billion in costs--around 10% of what it called its controllable costs--across the business by the end of 2026 compared with 2023. BP produced 7.6% more hydrocarbons in the quarter, while gas and low-carbon energy output fell 5.7%. The oil-and-gas major declared a stable dividend of 7.27 cents and announced a $1.75 billion buyback for the quarter. Dow Jones & Co. owns Factiva. (christian.moess@wsj.com)


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

05-07-24 0934ET