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Big Oil News: BP Swings to a Profit, Exxon Upgraded

BP said it swung to a profit for the fourth quarter, as crude oil prices crept higher and the company cut costs.

Big Oil News: BP Swings to a Profit, Exxon Upgraded

Market News Video

Feb 2, 2010

(MarketNewsVideo.com) -- BP (BP) said it swung to a profit for the fourth quarter, as crude oil prices crept higher and the company cut costs.

Earnings totaled $4.3 billion for the British oil giant, as compared to a loss of $3.34 billion in the same quarter of 2008.

BP said it earned $16.58 billion for the full-year 2009, 22 percent lower than 2008, when oil hit record levels.

Costs were 40 percent lower than last year, as production rose slightly.

Also today, BP's rival Exxon Mobil (XOM) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral by Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

BofA noted that Exxon's shares are nearly at the same level as they were at the market bottom in 2009, due to distorted performance from its ongoing stock transaction with XTO (XTO), but that the stock should head higher in the second quarter, as the deal is completed.

This is the Weekly Market Wrap for Friday, January 29. Please join us on Monday for the Week Ahead Market Report.

The preceeding is a transcript of the MarketNewsVideo.com video published at: http://www.marketnewsvideo.com/?id=201002OIL020210&mv=1.

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