Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO ) has posted much better than expected fourth quarter earnings results, as it continues to benefit from higher energy prices.

Written by StockNews.com

The San Antonio-based oil refiner reported Q4 EPS of $0.66, which was $0.19 better than the $0.47 that Wall Street expected. Revenues jumped 6% from last year to $6.65 billion, easily topping analysts’ $5.9 billion view.

Looking ahead, Tesoro forecast Q1 consolidated throughput between 800 and 850 thousand barrels per day. Back in November, TSO provided a 2017 outlook for fuel margins of 11 to 14 cents per gallon. It also committed to generating $475 to $575 million worth of annual operating income improvements this year. TSO expects to achieve this goal through a combination of M&A, cost cutting, and other operational improvements.

The company commented via press release:

“We made excellent progress in 2016 executing our growth and productivity improvement strategies. This included achieving very strong safety and refining availability, delivering annual improvements to operating income and making strategic acquisitions that position the Company for further growth. We returned approximately $500 million to shareholders in the form of share repurchases and dividends and invested in high-return capital projects. We achieved these results despite a challenging market environment characterized by lower refining margins and weaker crude oil differentials,” said Greg Goff, Chairman and CEO.

...Year-to-date, TSO has declined -4.69%, versus a 2.42% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.

TSO currently has a StockNews.com POWR Rating of C (Neutral), and is ranked #52 of 98 stocks in the Energy – Oil & Gas category.