Two Safety-conscious Oil & Gas Stocks

Article Excerpt

IMPERIAL OIL $48 (Toronto symbol IMO; SI Rating: Average) is Canada’s largest integrated oil company, with operations in all phases of the petroleum industry. In the three months ended June 30, 2007, Imperial’s earnings fell 14.9%, to $712 million or $0.76 a share, from $837 million or $0.85 a share. The decline came from the absence of tax rate reductions reported a year earlier and lower oil prices. Revenues fell 5.2%, to $6.3 billion from $6.7 billion. Imperial’s cash flow rose 1.7%, to $882 million from $867 million. Cash flow per share rose 5.6%, to $0.94 from $0.89. The higher per-share figure reflects continued aggressive stock buybacks. The company bought back $622 million of its stock in the latest quarter. Imperial still holds cash of $2 billion. Production is set to make a bigger contribution, thanks to Imperial’s new oil sands projects. That increases Imperial’s risk, but it should improve its profits in the long term. The outlook for Imperial’s refining business is strong…