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Aug 5 (Reuters) - U.S. refiner HollyFrontier Corp HFC.N
reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit as its refining
margins rose due to a steep fall in crude oil prices.
HollyFrontier's refinery gross margin rose to $17.42 per
produced barrel in the second quarter ended June 30 from $14.54
a year earlier.
HollyFrontier's refinery utilization rate rose to 107.7
percent from 102.3 percent.
U.S. refiners are running plants at full tilt, squeezing the
remaining dollars from strong gasoline demand before the busy
summer is replaced by the seasonal downturn during winter.
Net income attributable to the company's shareholders more
than doubled to $360.8 million, or $1.88 per share, in the
second quarter, from $176.4 million, or 89 cents per share, a
year earlier.
Excluding items related to inventory valuation, early
extinguishment of debt and sale of assets, the company earned
$1.45 per share, higher than the average analyst estimate of
$1.30, according Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Sales and other revenue declined about 31 percent to $3.70
billion.
Reuters reported last week that Tesoro Corp (NYSE:TSO) TSO.N held
unsuccessful talks to buy HollyFrontier earlier this year to
access cheaper crude from Rocky Mountain region.
Up to Tuesday's close of $46.87, shares of HollyFrontier had
risen about 25 percent this year.