Here's the article I mentioned in post #11:
Printed by the Associated Press on Saturday (May 1) in the local paper, the headline is:
GASOLINE COMPANY'S PROFITS SOAR (Rising gas prices send earnings up 33 percent in first quarter)
Driven by soaring gasoline prices, ChevronTexaco Corp.'s first-quarter earnings climbed 33 percent, continuing the oil giant's recent run of gushing profits.
The San Ramon-based company said Friday that it earned $2.56 billion, or $2.40 per share, in the three months ended March, up from $1.92 billion, or $1.81 per share, at the same time last year.
This year's results outstripped the mean estimate of $2.02 per share among analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call.
First-quarter revenue totaled $33.6 billion, up 9 percent from $30.8 billion last year.
With the fast start, ChevronTexaco is well on its way to improving on its performance in 2003 when the company earned $7.2 billion--more than it did in the previous two years combined.
Investors were pleased. ChevronTexaco's shares gained $1.15 to $91.50 during Friday's trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The company's stock is up by nearly 40 percent since the end of 2002.
The rising profits of ChevronTexaco and other major oil companies have squeezed the budget of many motorists faced with gas prices that have soared about $2.50 per gallon in many parts of the country, including ChevronTexaco's home turf in California.
It says nothing about their profit .. only their earnings.
Know what the net profits were?