PBF Energy posts bigger-than-expected loss, pushes Martinez restart to May

By Dharna Bafna

April 30 (Reuters) - PBF Energy PBF.N posted a bigger-than-expected loss for the first quarter on Thursday as refinery downtime and sharp swings in oil markets amid the ongoing war in Iran pressured earnings.

Shares of the company were up nearly 1% midday in volatile trading.

The U.S. refiner said during a post-earnings call that roughly 15 million barrels per day of crude and 5 million bpd of crude products were stuck at the Strait of Hormuz, with the vital shipping gateway still choked.

• PBF Energy reported an adjusted loss of 88 cents per share for the quarter ended March 31, higher than analysts' average estimate of a 71-cent loss, according to data compiled by LSEG.

• Excluding one-off items, such as insurance gains and inventory-related adjustments, PBF posted a net loss of $108.4 million, reflecting a $208.8 million mark-to-market loss on derivatives.

• However, its reported net income stood at $198.3 million, or $1.65 per share, compared with a loss of $401.8 million, or $3.53 per share a year earlier.

• "The commodity markets and refining environment were historically turbulent during the first quarter, and that looks like it will persist in the near term," said CEO Matt Lucey

• A fire had broken out at PBF's 157,000-barrel-per-day Martinez refinery in February 1 last year. The refiner had earlier said it expected the refinery to restart early March, but it is now expected to come online only in early-May.

• "If PBF can restart Martinez, it is looking at a strong earnings tailwind for the rest of the second quarter and second-half of 2026," analysts at UBS said.

• The company said its crude oil and feedstocks throughput in the reported quarter rose to 844,200 barrels per day (bpd) from 730,400 bpd a year earlier.

• It expects throughput for the second quarter to be in the range of 850,000 bpd to 910,000 bpd, while renewable diesel production is expected to average about 15,000 to 16,000 barrels per day.