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APA's profit beats expectations in the second quarter on higher natgas production and prices

APA Corp beat Wall Street expectations for quarterly profits on Wednesday as higher natural gas prices and stronger production in Egypt helped to blunt the impact from lower oil prices and reduced total output.

The shares of the company rose 2% during extended trading.

Natural gas prices have rebounded since last year, mainly due to hotter weather conditions, higher demand for electricity generation, and lower U.S. stock injections.

APA's average realized gasoline prices increased by nearly 29% to $2.28 per 1,000 cubic feet in the second quarter of last year.

The volume of natural gas rose by 7%, to 894 millions cubic feet per day. This was largely due to a strong performance from Egypt.

John Christmann, CEO of APA, said: "In Egypt we have exceeded our quarterly production guidance and increased our expectations once again for the gas programme in the second half year."

APA also announced that it had received presidential approval to drill on an additional 2 million acres of land in Egypt.

The Egyptian results help to cushion the impact of lower crude oil prices on assets.

Brent crude was about 20% lower than a year ago in the second quarter, weighed down mainly by U.S. tariffs on imports, worries over global growth, OPEC+'s increasing supply, and persistent geopolitical tensions.

After Israel's strike on Iranian nuclear sites in June, the price of a barrel briefly rose to $80 per barrel. However, it fell back down to $67 at quarter-end.

APA reported that its average realized crude oil price for the third quarter was $65.58 per barrel, down from $82.28 last year.

The company reported that its total quarterly production was down 2%, to 465.078 barrels equivalents per day from last year.

According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, the Houston-based company reported an adjusted profit per share of 87 cents for the three-month period ended June 30. This compares with the 48 cents average analyst estimate. (Reporting by Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)

(source: Reuters)