Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Tough Times In The Bakken -- Yahoo!Finance -- October 8, 2014

Front page story over at Yahoo!Finance today -- "The Bakken Blues: Struggling in a City With 0.8% Unemployment."
It bills itself as a “boomtown” on the sign driving into the city, and it’s at the epicenter of the U.S. energy revolution. In the city of Williston, North Dakota, the unemployment rate is 0.8% percent, compared to 5.9% nationally, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
And average income in this area, Williams County, was $78,390 a year in 2013 and more than $101,190 for those working in the oil and gas industry. (The national average was $46,440, according to the BLS's May 2013 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates.)
People end up here from all over, seeking better jobs than existed where they came from. Over the course of four days in the area, we also found that even in a region where RV parks seem as common a sight as oil rigs, golf courses and mansions have sprouted up, too.
We visited one 6,000 square foot house. It’s one of the first in a new development that has barely a neighbor. And homeowner Shayna Vedadi says she has received a few million-dollar offers to buy it.
So when it comes time to catch the bus out of town, why are some people lining up to leave? We met Brandon Broussard and Zachary Daly at the bus stop on their way back to Lafayette, Louisiana. They were leaving for good after their adventures in the North Dakota oil fields didn’t pan out as expected.
“We got paid a 40-hour set salary and we were working anywhere from 80 to 120 hours a week with no overtime,” complains Daly.
“I came up here for work and was promised a lot,” explains Broussard. “Now it’s time to go home.”
The two drill-pipe inspectors arrived here with jobs, but say the opportunity wasn’t what they expected. Plus, they say the cost of living was double that of back home.
I would have enjoyed hearing more about homeowner Shayna Vedadi and her 6,000-square-foot McMansion.

Earnings Season Kicks Off Today -- After Hours -- October 8, 2014

This is not an investment site. Do not make any investment, financial, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here.

Reminder: Alcoa reports after the market closes today.

Also note that "Earnings Central" has been moved to the top at the sidebar at the right.

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World's Largest Economy -- China -- Based On Purchasing Power
China Surpasses US In Purchasing Power

The link is here. I remember, several years ago, suggesting this would happen. A reader told me this would never happen in my lifetime. Whatever.

Earnings - 3Q14


All 3Q14 earnings will be reported at this page; the link will be on the sidebar at the right, under "Earnings Central." When we start to see earnings reports for any quarter, the "Earnings Central" link is moved to the top of the sidebar until the earning season is over.

I don't have time to check/update earnings on all companies listed below. If you see one that I have missed, feel free to send it in (anonymous comment or by e-mail) and I will post it.

Much of this information is done in haste. I assume there are factual and typographical errors. It is for my personal use only. If this information is important to you, go to the source.

Comment:

Miscellaneous articles:
General update (dates subject to change)
  • AAPL -- Oct 20 -- wow, it's so much fun going back and reading all the negative comments about Apple. Freudenschade, I believe, is the word. Not the best word, but close enough. At $1.42 far exceeded estimates, and "guides strongly."
  • Alcoa:  -- Oct 8 -- expectations, 23 cents; actual, 31 cents. When I saw this, I mentioned to Don that this was very, very impressive. I'm glad to see others agree. Yahoo!Finance in the headline called it a "solid beat." The reason for Alcoa's numbers:
  • Alcoa, which is shifting its focus to manufacturing components and alloys, said it would deliver a record amount of aluminum sheet to automakers this quarter as car and truck manufacturers use more of the lightweight metal. Earnings in the company’s rolled-products segment, a supplier of aluminum sheets to car, airplane and packaging manufacturers, will more than double from a year earlier, the New York-based company said today in a slide presentation.
    Alcoa is benefiting from higher commercial-jet orders and a shift to aluminum components instead of steel among automakers such as Ford Motor Co., which plans to make its F-150 pickup truck with aluminum body panels.
    “Auto body sheet has a much higher margin than anything except aircraft,” Lloyd O’Carroll, a Richmond, Virginia-based Analyst at Northcoast Research Holdings LLC who recommends buying Alcoa shares, said in an interview. “I think 2015 is going to get a pretty big lift of usage on the F-150 and of course all of the margin benefit of that.”
  • Wells Fargo: 
  • B of A: a 9-cent loss; revised from an early 32-cent gain; 
  • NFLX: at 96 cents earnings exceeded expectations of 93 cents; new customer numbers fell short; stock feel 25% (from $448 to $339 after-hours/after earnings came out) 

EPS estimates in parentheses following the ticker symbol (according to Yahoo!Finance) -- typographical errors likely.

American Railcar Industries:

APA ($ ): Nov 6

AXAS ($0.15 ): meets forecasts; AP story here;

AMZG ($ ): 

Baytex ($ ): 

BAX ($1.31 ):  beats by five cents; transcript;

BCEI; after market close; 51 cents; misses; 46 cents;

BHI ($1.14): misses; $1.02, transcript;

BK ($0.61 ): Oct 17 

BKH:  Nov 3

Calfrac Well Services (CFW.TO), before market open; 41 cents; 51 cents; press release here; 

CHK ($0.33): AP; beats by 5 cents; 38 cents;

CLNE ( ): Oct 23

CLR ($0.81):
Continental Resources Inc, the largest oil producer in North Dakota's Bakken shale formation, said on Wednesday its quarterly profit soared due to a gain on derivatives and higher output. The company posted third-quarter net income of $533.5 million, or $1.44 per share, compared with $167.5 million, or 45 cents per share, in the year-ago period. 
CNI (Canadian National Railway) ($ ): 

CNP ($0.30): press release; beats by 3 cents;
 
COP ($1.20): beats by 10 - 12 cents; shares flat.

Crescent Point (CPG.TO); before market open: 42 cents; adjusted profit rises 10%;

CRR ($0.75 ):  beats by 8 cents; shares fall.

CVX ($ ): quarterly profit jumps 13%. From Reuters:
The company posted net income of $5.59 billion, or $2.95 per share, compared with $4.95 billion, or $2.57 per share, in the year-ago period.
Production fell nearly 1 percent to 2.57 million barrels of oil equivalent per day as new wells failed to offset declines at old wells.
DNR ($0.26 ): AP; meets/beats; 26 cents;
 
DVN ($1.24 ):   beats by 11 cents; output jumps 19 percent;

ECA ($ ):  

EEP ($ ):  Nov 3

ENB ($0.38): beats by 2 cents; press release;  

EOG ($ ): press release; $1.31;

EOX (Emerald) ($ ): Nov 3 

EPD ($0.37 ):   in-line; misses on revs; shares down a bit.

ERF ($ ):

ETP ($0.65): lackluster earnings; Natural gas pipeline operator Energy Transfer Partners LP reported third-quarter 2014 earnings of 44 cents per limited partner unit, lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 66 cents.

GEOI (bought by Halcon [HK], below)

GMXR:

HAL ($1.10 ): Also blew away earnings estimates at $1.19; raises dividend. What's not to like?

HES ($ ): beats estimates; Bakken production surges; shares up:

Hess posted a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday as production jumped in North Dakota's Bakken shale formation.
Net income surged to $1 billion, or $3.31 per share, in the third quarter from $420 million, or $1.23 per share, in the year-ago period.
Excluding recent asset sales and other one-time items, the company posted profit of $1.24 per share.
HP ($ ): Nov 13

HK (Halcon; previously GEOI) ($0.06 ):  Halcon resources with a big miss, 3 cents vs 6 cents forecast. Press release.  Halcon operates 8 rigs acorss its holdings; Halcon will cut five rigs originally planned for 2015. Currently operating 3 rigs in the Bakken. Snapshot here.

Kinder Morgan - KMI ($.34 ): Oct 15
KMI’s board of directors announced an increase in the quarterly cash dividend to $0.44 per share ($1.76 annualized), up 7 percent from $0.41 per share ($1.64 annualized) for the same period last year, payable on Nov. 17, 2014, to shareholders of record as of Oct. 31, 2014. 
Kinder Morgan - KMP ($ ):  misses; 57 cents; ups dividend;

KOG ($0.20 ): 15 cents; misses;

Legacy/Bowood ($ ): 

LINE ($0.41 ): actual, 53 cents; press release;

MDU ($ ): transcript; misses by 4 cents; will spin off Fidelity;

MHR (Magnum Hunter) ($ ): 

MMR (McMoRan) ( ): 

MPC (Marathon Petroleum ($ ): Oct 30

MPO: see this post; beats by 18 cents;

MRO (Marathon Oil) ($ ): misses by 3 cents;

NBL: Oct 28

NBR ($ ): Oct 21

NFX ($ ): meets by one cent;

NGLS: Nov 4

NOG ($0.26 ): in-line; beats on revs;

NOV ($1.53 ): beats by 7 cents; shares fall;

PAA ($0.52): reported third-quarter 2014 adjusted earnings of 49 cents per unit, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 51 cents by 3.9%. 

OAS ( $ ):  huge miss; misses by 19 cents;

OKE ($ ): beats by a penny;

OKS ($ ): missed by 24 cents;

OTTR ($ ): Nov 3

OXY ($ ):  Oct 27

PAA ($0.52):  reported third-quarter 2014 adjusted earnings of 49 cents per unit, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 51 cents by 3.9%.

PSX ($ ): profit doubles; beats by 27 cents; costs slide;

Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD): $1.35; announces public offering of 5.75 million shares; beats by 10 cents;

QEP ($0.28):  the company reported earnings per share – adjusted for special items – of 41 cents, up 14% from the prior-year quarter level of 36 cents. The bottom line also beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 28 cents.

RRC (Range Resources): Oct 29

RIG ($ ): 

SD ($ ): Nov 5

SLB ($ ): beats by 3 cents; stock moves up nicely;

SM ($ ): beats by two cents;

SRE ($1.24 ): beats by 16 cents; profit rises 16%;

SRGY:

SSN:

STO (BEXP) ($ ):  

STR ($ ): beats by 4 cents;

Starbucks ($ ): Oct 30

T ($.65 ): Oct 22

Targa Resources (TRGP): press release;

TPLM ($ ):  

TransCanada (TRP.TO) ($ ): 

Ultra Petroleum (UPL) ($ ): 

UNP ($ ): Oct 23

USEG ($ ): 

VLO ($1.57): beats by 45 cents;

VOG: 

WDFC: beats by 13 cents; stock surges;

WFT ($ ): Oct 22

WHX:  

WHZ:

WLL ($ ): which is it?

Whiting Petroleum Corp posted a higher-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday as production rose 33 percent at its North Dakota wells. Denver-based Whiting posted net income of $158 million, or $1.32 per share, compared with $204 million, or $1.71 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding one-time items, the company earned $1.24 per share. By that measure, analysts expected earnings of $1.21 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

WMB ($ ):  misses by 3 cents but confirms dividend-growth guidance of ~ 15% annually -- from the higher 3Q14 base -- through 2017 with planned dividends of ~ $1.96 in 2014, $2.46 in 2015, $2.82 in 2016, $3.25 in 2017. Shares surge over 3%.

WPX ($ ): Williams Cos profit soars; boosted by Access Midstream stake; shares up 2%

XOM ($1.71 ): quarterly profit rises 3%. From Reuters:

Profit in the third quarter rose to $8.07 billion, or $1.89 per share, from $7.87 billion, or $1.79 per share in the year-ago period.
Analysts, on average, expected a profit of $1.71 per share.
Oil and gas production fell 4.7 percent. Exxon said it remained on track for full-year output of 4 million barrels oil equivalent per day (boed).
XLNX ($0.56 ): beats by 7 cents; stock surges; transcript;

McKenzie County Passes A County Budget Of Almost $200 Million -- Wednesday -- October 8, 2014

Active rigs:


10/8/201410/08/201310/08/201210/08/201110/08/2010
Active Rigs190184193194156

RBN Energy: Part IV -- Eagle Ford condensate.
Just four years ago (October 2010) the Eagle Ford Basin was producing less than 100 Mb/d of crude oil. Now production is over 1.5 MMb/d and in the interim a network of gathering, pipeline and terminal infrastructure has sprung up to deliver crude and condensate to market via Houston and Corpus Christi.
The quality challenge of handling up to 45 percent condensate has changed in the last year from one of “dealing with” unwanted super-light crude into a midstream scramble to build condensate splitters and now export facilities. Today we continue our survey of changing Eagle Ford infrastructure by looking at Harvest, Martin, Trafigura and Buckeye.
This is Part 4 in our series updating analysis of Eagle Ford infrastructure.
In Part 1 (see Condensate City – Finding a Home For Eagle Ford Crude) we described a five-fold increase in Eagle Ford crude oil production over the past three years to 1.5 MMb/d. We explained that unlike other basins such as the Bakken in North Dakota, takeaway capacity has not been a big challenge for Eagle Ford producers. Instead the varying quality and in particular the high percentage of condensate in liquids output (about 45 percent) has caused headaches for producers and refiners alike. We also noted that two main pipeline routes to market have developed from the Eagle Ford – south to the Port of Corpus Christi and East to Houston area refineries.
In Part 2 we described the growth and continuing expansion of the crude takeaway systems developed by Magellan Midstream Partners and Kinder Morgan.
In Part 3 we reviewed the expanding takeaway infrastructure developed by Plains All American Pipeline (Plains) and Enterprise Product Partners (Enterprise). This time we look at relatively smaller infrastructure build out by Harvest Pipeline, Martin Midstream, Energy Transfer Partners and Trafigura.
The Dickinson Press is reporting:
McKenzie County commissioners have approved a whopping budget of $188.8 million, a 93 percent increase over 2014, as North Dakota’s largest oil producing county tries to keep up with booming growth.
Canadian train derailment: this is incredibly unimportant in the big scheme of things, but for the archives, CBC is reporting a major train derailment near Wadena, Saskatchewan. Wadena, Saskatchewan, is about 275 miles due north of Williston; or about 100 miles northeast of Regina. The train was 100 cars long; 60 cars were empty; forty were carrying freight; two tank cars carrying crude oil condensate exploded; no injuries. Twenty-six (26) cars derailed: six of them contained hazardous materials, including four that had either hydrochloric acid or caustic soda. The other two had petroleum distillates, CN said. These were the two that exploded. The origin of the train was west of the Bakken.

How Far Will The "Correction" Go? -- October 8 , 2014

This is not an investment site so this article does not particularly interest me but it was submitted by Richard Zeits to Seeking Alpha.

This is the link to the article: http://seekingalpha.com/article/2547705-oil-and-gas-stocks-how-far-are-we-in-this-correction?ifp=0.

Many Seeking Alpha articles are taken down, archived, and available only through subscriptions.