The 16 integrated oil companies assessed by Moody's distributed ``generous'' returns amid rising global energy prices, analysts for the New York-based credit rating agency led by Philipp Lotter said in a report released today. ``We expect growth in dividends to continue,'' they said.
Oil producers gaining from rising oil and natural-gas prices are rewarding investors with higher dividends and stock buybacks as state-run competitors block their access to new deposits. Exxon, Chevron and Shell all reported record profits last year as concern that supplies from the Middle East and Africa would fall short pushed up oil prices.
Exxon posted a profit of $39.5 billion, while Shell's net income of $25.4 billion and Chevron's $17.1 billion were also all-time highs. Crude-oil futures contracts traded in New York rose to a record $78.40 a barrel on July 14.
The other companies that contributed to the $118 billion payout are BP Plc, Total SA, Eni SpA, Statoil ASA, ConocoPhillips, Marathon Oil Corp., OAO Gazprom, Repsol YPF SA, OAO Rosneft, OAO Lukoil and OAO Gazprom Neft.
Moody's also said scarce reserves and steep costs may lead to a wave of mergers among international oil companies.
``Mergers and acquisition activity is likely to be increasingly driven by the need to expand the reserve base'' and combat mounting project costs, the analysts said.
The credit rating company said the overall outlook for the world's biggest oil companies was stable, as energy prices balanced the impact of growing influence among state-owned producers. Eight of the nine rating changes it implemented last year in the sector were upgrades.
OAO, 
Gazprom, 
Moody's, 
REPSOL, 
Rosneft, 
Middle East, 
ConocoPhillips, 
Marathon Oil, 
Statoil, 
TOTAL,
ExxonMobil, 
Chevron, 
Africa
