Feb 18 (Reuters) - Occidental Petroleum OXY.N beat Wall Street expectations for fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday, as strength in its midstream unit helped the U.S. shale producer offset weaker crude oil prices.
Shares of the company rose 3% in extended trading.
Occidental's realized oil prices fell to $59.22 per barrel in the fourth quarter, from $69.73 a year earlier, though production rose slightly to 1.48 million barrels (MMboepd) of oil equivalent per day.
Growing concerns about an oil glut had put pressure on global oil prices, with Brent crude LCOc1 falling more than 9% during the quarter.
The company's midstream unit reported a pre-tax income of $204 million, compared to a loss of $123 million a year earlier.
Higher gas margins from transportation capacity optimization in the Permian, reduced long-haul crude transportation costs and higher sulfur prices at Al Hosn, where it runs joint venture with Abu Dhabi National Oil Co ADNOC.UL, boosted the business.
Occidental said it expects capital expenditure to be in the range of $5.5 billion to $5.9 billion and average production between 1.42 MMboepd and 1.48 MMboepd in 2026.
Output is expected to range between 1.38 MMboepd and 1.42 MMboepd in the first quarter.
Meanwhile, the company said it reduced its debt by $5.8 billion since mid-December, adding it aimed to achieve principal debt of roughly $14.3 billion in 2026.
Occidental had been saddled with a massive debt load following its $55 billion purchase of Anadarko Petroleum in 2019 and the $12 billion acquisition of CrownRock last year.
The Houston-based company's long-term debt stood at $20.63 billion as of December 31.
Occidental posted an adjusted profit of 31 cents per share for the three months ended December 31, compared with expectations of 18 cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.