Aramco Unveils Financial Secrets of World's Most Profitable Firm - Bloomberg

Aramco Unveils Financial Secrets of World's Most Profitable Firm - Bloomberg:

The first official glimpse of Saudi Aramco’s financial performance confirms the state-run oil giant can generate profit like no other company on Earth: net income last year was $111.1 billion, easily outstripping U.S. behemoths including Apple Inc. and Exxon Mobil Corp.

But accounts published before the firm’s debut in the international bond market also show Aramco -- an organization that produces about 10 percent of the world’s crude-- doesn’t generate as much cash per barrel as other leading oil companies like Royal Dutch Shell Plc because of the heavy tax burden imposed by the Saudi state.

The bond sale, being pitched to investors this week in a global roadshow, has forced Aramco to reveal secrets held close since the company’s nationalization in the late 1970s, casting a light on the relationship between the kingdom and its most important asset. Both Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service assigned Aramco the fifth-highest investment grade, the same as Saudi sovereign debt, but lower than oil majors Exxon, Shell and Chevron Corp.