ConocoPhillips, the Houston company with major operations in Oklahoma reported a 7.5 percent increase in its 2017 fourth quarter dividends .
Earnings for the fourth quarter totaled $1.6 billion or $1.32 per share. In the fourth quarter of 2016, the company reported a net loss of $35 million or $0.03 per share.
For the full-year 2017, ConocoPhillips reported a net loss of $0.9 billion in earnings or $0.70 per share. The figures compare to a full-year 2016 net loss of $3.6 billion or $2.91 per share.
Despite the losses, Ryan Lance, chairman and chief executive officer said, “2017 was a very successful year by all measures.”
He said the company transformed its portfolio, strengthened the balance sheet and returned 61 percent of cash flow from operations to shareholders.
Lance said since the start of the year, the company has paid down $2.25 billion of debt and raised its quarterly dividend rate by 7.5 percent. The firm has also increased its planned 2018 share buybacks to $2 billion.
As for what the company leaders expect in 2018, they predict production will grow by 5 percent compared to the full year 2017 underlying production.
ConocoPhillips still has major operations in Bartlesville where it was once headquartered.