【今日单词】
pristine /ˈprɪstiːn/
adjective
clean and fresh as if new; spotless.
"a pristine white shirt"
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【原文】来自：金融时报 / The Financial Times
DEREK BROWER — NEW YORK
Oil and gas groups are set to dominate the list of best-performing US stocks in 2022.
Of the 25 performers in the benchmark S&P 500 index of stocks, as many as 15 will be fossil fuel operators.
The energy sector has climbed almost 60 per cent, a sharp contrast with a 21 per cent drop in the S&P 500 as a whole and a stunning stock market comeback for companies that were shunned when climate concerns reached Wall Street in recent years.
The turnround is especially stark in the US shale sector, where a decade of debt-fuelled drilling brought low and volatile returns. Occidental Petroleum was a prime example when it borrowed $40bn to buy a rival in 2019, driving shares down by almost 90 per cent in two years.
But the oil price recovery over the past 18 months, coupled with operators’ stingier capital spending, has yielded a torrent of free cash flow, transforming the sector’s financial position.
“Companies have pristine balance sheets, there’s very little near-term debt risk, and [they] are . . . moving forwards towards a net-cash position” while offering bumper dividends and share buyback programmes, said Matt Portillo, head of research at TPH&Co, an investment bank.
“In a recessionary environment, that’s a great spot to be in.”
The surge in crude prices has bolstered the sector, with US oil and gas companies recording $200bn in net profits.
