Independent U.S. refiner Valero Energy Corp’s quarterly profit beat Wall Street estimates on Thursday due to lower expenses and as it processed more crude.
The San Antonio, Texas-based company said refinery throughput capacity utilization was 99 percent, with volumes averaging 3.1 million barrels per day in the quarter while administrative expenses fell 7 percent to $209 million.
Refiners have been benefiting from a discount on crude prices in Midland Texas, which reached a near five-week high in August, as production surged in the U.S. and pipelines operated at full capacity due to transportation bottlenecks.
Net income attributable to the company’s shareholders rose to $856 million, or $2.01 per share, in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, from $841 million, or $1.91 per share, a year earlier.
On an adjusted basis, the company earned $2.01 per share.
Total revenue rose to $30.85 billion from $23.56 billion.
Analysts, on average, had expected the company to report a profit of $1.95 per share on a revenue of $28.22 billion, according to Refinitiv data.