TotalEnergies Doubles Profits in its Best Year Ever
TotalEnergies (NYSE: TTE) saw its net profit double in 2022 to a record $36.2 billion and announced an increase in dividends and share repurchases after the best annual results for the company and for Big Oil ever.
The French supermajor reported on Wednesday $36.2 billion in adjusted net income for 2022, double from a year earlier, thanks to higher oil and gas production, higher prices, a jump in LNG sales, and what it described as a “historic” performance in the downstream segment.
For the fourth quarter of 2022, TotalEnergies reported cash flow of $9.1 billion, and an adjusted net income of $7.6 billion, up by 11% from Q4 2021. For the full year 2022, the company generated $45.7 billion in cash flow.
“While down from the previous quarter highs due to uncertainties about the demand outlook, fourth quarter oil and gas prices as well as refining margins remained strong in supply-constrained markets. Benefiting from this favorable environment as well as the increase in its hydrocarbon production (+5%) and LNG sales (+22%), thanks to its unique position in Europe, TotalEnergies reported cash flow of $9.1 billion and adjusted net income of $7.6 billion,” CEO Patrick Pouyanné said in a statement.
TotalEnergies’ board of directors is proposing a 6.5% rise in the ordinary dividend for 2022, plus a special dividend of $1.07 (1 euro) per share already paid in December 2022. The board confirmed a shareholder return policy for 2023 targeting a payout of 35-40%, which will combine an increase in interim dividends of more than 7% and share buybacks of $2 billion in the first quarter of 2023.
Looking forward, the company said, “The tensions on European gas prices seen in 2022 are expected to continue into 2023, as the limited growth in global LNG production is supposed to meet both higher European LNG demand to replace Russian gas received in 2022 and higher Chinese LNG demand.”
TotalEnergies is the latest Big Oil firm to report record earnings for 2022, following smashing profits at Chevron, Exxon, BP, Shell, and Equinor.
