Chevron's Profitability

Its profit of $14.1 billion for the full year was also a company record.

The San Ramon, Calif.-based company's earnings for 2005's final quarter, released Friday, represented the most it has made in any three-month period since its inception in 1879. The performance edged the $4.13 billion earned during the second quarter of 2004—the early stages of a two-year boom.

Chevron now has posted record annual profits in each of the last two years, earning a combined $27.4 billion.

Oppenheimer & Co. Fadel Gheit believes Chevron will set yet another new earnings record this year as the company continues to mine crude oil prices that are expected to remain above $60 per barrel. "We are only scratching the surface," Gheit said. "In my view, this company is hitting on all cylinders."

The windfalls that Chevron has been generating aren't unique in its industry. Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's largest publicly traded oil company, earned nearly $10 billion in the third quarter and may top that performance when it releases its fourth quarter results Monday.

Chevron's latest quarterly profit, translating to $1.86 per share, compared with net income of $3.44 billion, or $1.63 per share, in the comparable 2004 period.

Revenue totaled $53.8 billion, a 26 percent increase from $42.7 billion in the comparable 2004 period.