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Gold/Mining/Energy : Strictly: Drilling and oil-field services -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Tomas who wrote (84730)	1/19/2001 10:28:28 AM
From: Tomas	Respond to of 95453

Oil firms post record profit - But investors ignore strong showing and shift their money to high-tech stocks The Globe & Mail, Friday January 19 David Parkinson CALGARY -- Three major Canadian oil and gas producers reported record financial results to kick off the sector's year-end earnings reporting season, but the strong showing failed to capture the imagination of investors. Imperial Oil Ltd., Suncor Energy Inc. and PanCanadian Petroleum Ltd. all reported that profits in 2000 were the highest in their history, fuelled primarily by surging prices for crude oil and natural gas during the year. Analysts were particularly impressed with the numbers for Toronto-based Imperial Oil, the country's biggest oil and gas company, which exceeded all expectations for the final quarter of the year. Nevertheless, investors turned their backs on the sector. The Toronto Stock Exchange's oil and gas index fell 3.7 per cent yesterday as investors shifted their money into the high-tech sector amid a general feeling that the worst of that group's earnings disappointments are past. "Money is flowing back to the techs, and that hurts [the oil sector]," said Mark Heim, an analyst with Yorkton Securities Inc. The switch to the tech sector helped knock 40 cents off Imperial's share price in Toronto, dropping it to $34.75 despite reporting a fourth-quarter profit of $492-million or $1.20 a share, far above analysts' forecasts of about 85 cents. Profit was up 140 per cent from the fourth quarter of 1999. Imperial attributed the improvement to high commodity prices and improved margins in its refining operations. ... Analysts said the market continues to undervalue oil and gas stocks despite quarter after quarter of strong financial results, mainly because of fears of volatility in prices for crude and natural gas. Full article: globeandmail.com