Chevron’s record earnings still disappoint

Chevron Corp. said Friday its second-quarter earnings soared to a new high, but that wasn’t enough to satisfy investors whose expectations have been raised by the oil industry’s recent run of eye-popping profit.

The San Ramon, Calif.-based company earned $4.35 billion, or $1.97 per share, for the three months ended in June. That represented an 18 percent increase from net income of $3.68 billion, or $1.76 per share, at the same time last year.

It marks the largest three-month profit in Chevron’s 127-year history, eclipsing earnings of $4.14 billion registered in last year’s final quarter after energy prices spiked in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

As mammoth as it might appear to motorists weary of $3-per-gallon gas prices, Chevron’s profit let down Wall Street. The average earnings estimate among analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had been $2.21 per share.

•Office Depot Inc., the nation’s second-largest office supply chain behind Staples Inc., said Friday its second-quarter earnings rose 18 percent on higher sales and improved margins.

But the Delray Beach, Fla.-based company’s shares fell nearly 8 percent, despite beating Wall Street expectations. Analysts noted that earnings were boosted by $272 million in share buybacks in the quarter.

For the quarter ended July 1, net income grew to $118.3 million, or 41 cents per share, from $100 million, or 31 cents per share, a year ago. Excluding exit costs and other charges, the company posted latest-quarter profit of $125 million, or 43 cents per share.

•Mazda Motor Corp. said profit surged nearly 16-fold in the April-June quarter from a year earlier as solid sales of its minivan and sport convertible models in the U.S. and Europe offset sluggish domestic sales.

The Japanese affiliate of Ford Motor Co. posted a group net income of 6.61 billion yen, or $57 million, in the fiscal first quarter, up from the 419 million yen it posted a year earlier.

The profit jump was also due to sharply trimmed special losses after it booked a one-time loss of about 21 billion yen.