APA beats quarterly profit estimates as lower costs offset weak prices, output

Feb 25 (Reuters) - Oil and gas company APA APA.O beat fourth-quarter profit estimates on Wednesday, helped by lower operating costs, which offset the impact from weaker commodity prices and a drop in production.

Global crude oil prices have been pressured by growing worries of a glut and the increasing prospect of Venezuela adding more barrels to global supply. WTI crude CLc1 fell about 20% in 2025, and declined 8% in the October-December quarter.

The company said the average realized price of oil for the quarter was down 15.7% at $61.03 per barrel, compared with a year earlier, while price for natural gas dropped 4.6% to $2.10 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf).

APA said it produced 459,767 barrels of oil equivalent per day, which fell from 488,308 boepd a year earlier.

Quarterly operating expenses for APA stood at $1.49 billion, down from $2 billion a year ago.

Last month, the oil and gas firm said it curtailed production for U.S. natural gas and natural gas liquids in the fourth quarter in response to weak prices.

APA, which curtailed production in all quarters of fiscal 2025, said it expects to invest $2.1 billion in upstream capital for the current year.

"Permian development capital is expected to be $1.2 billion, plus an additional investment of $100 million toward projects designed to sustainably reduce LOE (lease operating expenses) over time," the company added.

The company expects current‑year adjusted production of about 371,000 boepd, a year‑over‑year decline driven by lower North Sea and U.S. gas volumes as well as asset sales.

The company's adjusted profit was 91 cents per share for the three months ended December 31, compared with analysts' average estimate of 64 cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.

However, its net income for the quarter was $279 million, down from $354 million a year earlier.