Turkmenistan focused oil and gas explorer and producer Dragon Oil (DGO) managed to drive up comparative gross production by 15 per cent to 73,600 barrels a day at the half-year stage, but revenues were held in check by a 16 per cent fall in realised oil prices to $86 a barrel, down from $102 a barrel in the first half last year.
Total sales were down by 2 per cent to 5.7m barrels, but Dragon's interim performance wasn't helped by its dwindling share of overall production, which fell to 44 per cent, against 49 per cent in the corresponding period. Under the terms of the production-sharing contract, which extends until the end of 2014, the proportion due to Dragon is tied to its capital expenditure outlay. This actually fell by 28 per cent to $149m (£97m) over the period, although the company anticipates spending another $300m by the year-end.
Dragon has struggled to secure the services of suitable contractors in the Caspian Sea region, but by early 2014 the company expects to award contracts for the construction of up to four platforms. With six wells scheduled for completion by the year-end, Dragon has reiterated that annual production is expected to increase at the lower end of a 10-15 per cent range.
Goodbody expects 2013 EPS of 108.9¢ (from 119.2 ¢ in 2012).
| DRAGON OIL (DGO) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 616p | MARKET VALUE: | £3.0bn | |
| TOUCH: | 611p-617p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 669p | LOW: 484p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.2% | PE RATIO: | 9 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 619¢ | NET CASH: | $2.1bn | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Turnover ($m) | Pre-tax profit ($m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 588 | 414 | 60.5 | 15.0 |
| 2013 | 492 | 330 | 49.3 | 15.0 |
| % change | -16 | -20 | -19 | - |
Ex-div: 14 Aug Payment: 16 Sep £1 = $1.53 | ||||
