Members of media chat before the start of a press conference by Aramco at the Plaza Conference Center in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia November 3, 2019.
Hamad I Mohammed | Reuters
Saudi Aramco’s first-quarter net profit fell 5% year-on-year amid lower oil prices and production.
Net income for the three months to March 31 came in at $26 billion, down from $27.3 billion for the same period last year, the company reported. The figure was slightly above analyst expectations of $25.3 billion.
Aramco announced its free cash flow for the quarter at $19.2 billion, down from $22.8 billion in the first quarter of 2024, and cash flow from operating activities at $31.7 billion compared to last year’s $33.6 billion.
The figures signal continuing strain for the Saudi state oil giant’s balance sheet as crude prices show no sign of recovering and global demand slows in line with pressures on trade.
The company in March announced it would be slashing its performance-linked dividend payout for the fourth quarter of 2024 to $200 million — down from $10.2 billion the previous quarter — and repeated that $200 million figure for the first-quarter of this year, to be paid in the second quarter.
Its first-quarter base dividend, however, increased by 4.2% year-on-year to $21.1 billion.
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