Apache 3Q Profit Tumbles On Lower Oil, Gas Prices

HOUSTON (AP) — Oil and gas company Apache Corp. on Thursday said its third-quarter profit tumbled 63 percent as lower oil and gas prices drove down revenue and margins.

The latest quarter was defined by stabilizing oil prices between $59 and $74 per barrel, down dramatically from the same period a year ago when oil traded at record levels as high as $147.27 per barrel.

Natural-gas prices nearly reached $14 per 1,000 cubic feet in the third quarter of last year. In the third quarter of 2009, prices ranged between $2.50 and $5 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Apache's quarterly earnings fell to $440.6 million, or $1.30 per share, from $1.19 billion, or $3.52 per share, during the same period last year.

Excluding special items, the company reported adjusted earnings of $1.58 per share.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimated a profit of $1.61 per share, on average. Analysts typically exclude one-time items from their estimates.

Revenue declined 31 percent to $2.33 billion from $3.36 billion. Analysts forecast revenue of $2.24 billion.

Shares of the company rose $2.40, or 2.6 percent, to $96.25 in morning trading.