U.S. oil giant Chevron (CVX) has announced that it is raising its quarterly dividend by 8% as it returns a record amount of cash to its stockholders.
In releasing its latest financial results, Chevron said that its board of directors approved an 8% increase in the quarterly dividend to $1.63 U.S. per share starting in March of this year.
The boost takes the dividend yield on Chevron’s stock above 4%.
The oil major noted that it returned a record $23.60 billion U.S. to its shareholders in 2023 by paying out $11.30 billion U.S. in dividends and buying back $14.90 billion of its own stock.
The record payout comes despite Chevron’s profit last year declining 40% to $21.30 billion U.S. from $35.50 billion U.S. in 2022 when crude oil prices were above $100 U.S. per barrel.
For the fourth and final quarter of 2023, Chevron reported earnings per share of $3.45 U.S. compared to $3.21 U.S. that was expected among analysts.
Revenue in the quarter totaled $47.18 billion U.S. compared to $51.62 billion U.S. that was expected on Wall Street.
Chevron recorded an impairment charge of $1.90 billion U.S. associated with the decommissioning of assets in the Gulf of Mexico.
The company’s profits from its refining operations dropped 35% year-over-year to $1.15 billion U.S. in Q4 2023. The company said it continues to struggle with volatile crude oil prices.
However, Chevron still managed to produce a record 3.1 million oil-equivalent barrels per day in 2023 as the company raised its capital expenditures.
Chevron’s stock has declined 13% over the last 12 months to trade at $147.89 U.S. per share.
