Oppenheimer: Big Oil Lowest Quarterly Results In Years

After commenting on the state of Big Oil's dividends, and net asset values, analysts at Oppenheimer have gone on to predict that the third quarter will see the worst set of results from the oil sector since 2009.

Specifically, Oppenheimer is forecasting that oil majors will report the lowest quarterly earnings figures in years, with estimated losses for all 15 large E&Ps (Anadarko, Apache, Cabot Oil & Gas, Chesapeake, ConocoPhillips, Devon, EOG Resources, Hess, Marathon Oil, Murphy, Noble, Occidental, Pioneer, Range Resource and Southwestern) except Devon.

Poor results will reflect the rising capital spend and higher operating costs that have characterized the sector during the past five years. Higher costs have sharply raised break-even prices and as a result, Big Oil has become extremely vulnerable to low oil...