Marathon Petroleum net income down $508M year-over-year

Marathon Petroleum Corp. reported net income of $443 million for 2019’s fourth quarter compared with $951 million for fourth-quarter 2018.

Fourth-quarter 2019 results include a pre-tax charge of $1.2 billion primarily related to a midstream goodwill impairment related to MPLX LP, the company said Jan. 29. Adjusted net income was $1.0 billion for the quarter, compared to $1.7 billion for fourth-quarter 2018.

Full year 2019 income was $2.6 billion and adjusted income was $3.3 billion.

Marathon Petroleum realized $420 million of synergies in the fourth quarter. The majority came from the refining and marketing segment, including: $62 million from catalyst formulation improvements at multiple refineries, $55 million in crude supply optimization in the mid-continent region, and $15 million in marine optimization.

The company realized $1.1 billion of total synergies in 2019, exceeding the targeted $600 million of annual gross run-rate synergies. The majority of the synergy capture for the year related to operational and commercial performance in the refining and marketing segment, including: $128 million in catalyst formulation enhancements at seven refineries, $76 million in turnaround execution improvements at the Los Angeles, Martinez, and St. Paul Park refineries, $127 million in crude supply optimization in the mid-continent region, and $25 million in improved crude sourcing for the West Coast refineries.

Income from operations was $841 million in the quarter compared with $2.0 billion for fourth-quarter 2018.

Full-year income from operations was $5.6 billion in 2019 compared to $5.6 billion in 2018.

Midstream segment income from operations, which primarily reflects the results of MPLX, was $889 million in the fourth quarter compared with $889 million for the fourth quarter of 2018.

Income from the company’s refining and marketing segment from operations was $912 million in the fourth quarter compared with $923 million in the same quarter of 2018.

Refinery capacity utilization was 94% percent, the company said, resulting in total throughputs of 3.1 million b/d for the fourth quarter.