Chevron Value Stock - Dividend - Research Selection

Description of the company

Chevron Corporation,* a Delaware corporation, manages its investments in subsidiaries and affiliates and provides administrative, financial, management and technology support to U.S. and international subsidiaries that engage in integrated energy and chemicals operations. Upstream operations consist primarily of exploring for, developing and producing crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas; transporting crude oil by major international oil export pipelines; transporting, storage and marketing of natural gas; and a gas-to-liquids plant. Downstream operations consist primarily of refining crude oil into petroleum products; marketing of crude oil and refined products; transporting crude oil and refined products by pipeline, marine vessel, motor equipment and rail car; and manufacturing and marketing of commodity petrochemicals, plastics for industrial uses and fuel and lubricant additives.

A list of the company’s major subsidiaries is presented on page E-5. As of December 31, 2016, Chevron had approximately 55,200 employees (including about 3,200 service station employees). Approximately 26,500 employees (including about 3,100 service station employees), or 48 percent, were employed in U.S. operations.

Overview of Petroleum Industry

Petroleum industry operations and profitability are influenced by many factors. Prices for crude oil, natural gas, petroleum products and petrochemicals are generally determined by supply and demand. Production levels from the members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) are a major factor in determining worldwide supply. Demand for crude oil and its products and for natural gas is largely driven by the conditions of local, national and global economies, although weather patterns and taxation relative to other energy sources also play a significant part. Laws and governmental policies, particularly in the areas of taxation, energy and the environment, affect where and how companies conduct their operations and formulate their products and, in some cases, limit their profits directly.

Strong competition exists in all sectors of the petroleum and petrochemical industries in supplying the energy, fuel and chemical needs of industry and individual consumers. Chevron competes with fully integrated, major global petroleum companies, as well as independent and national petroleum companies, for the acquisition of crude oil and natural gas leases and other properties and for the equipment and labor required to develop and operate those properties. In its downstream business, Chevron competes with fully integrated, major petroleum companies, as well as independent refining, marketing, transportation and chemicals entities and national petroleum companies, in the sale or acquisition of various goods or services in many national and international markets.

Chevron’s Strategic Direction

Chevron’s primary objective is to deliver industry-leading results and superior shareholder value in any business environment. In the upstream, the company’s strategy is to deliver industry-leading returns while developing high-value resource opportunities. In the downstream, the company's strategy is to grow earnings across the value chain and make targeted investments to lead the industry in returns.

Information about the company is available on the company’s website at www.chevron.com. Information contained on the company’s website is not part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The company’s Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and any amendments to these reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 are available free of charge on the company’s website soon after such reports are filed with or furnished to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The reports are also available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

Description of Business and Properties

The upstream and downstream activities of the company and its equity affiliates are widely dispersed geographically, with operations and projects* in North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. Tabulations of segment sales and other operating revenues, earnings and income taxes for the three years ending December 31, 2016, and assets as of the end of 2016 and 2015 — for the United States and the company’s international geographic areas — are in Note 15 to the Consolidated Financial Statements beginning on page FS-40. Similar comparative data for the company’s investments in and income from equity affiliates and property, plant and equipment are in Notes 16 and 17 on pages FS-43 through FS-44. Refer to page FS-14 of this Form 10-K in Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations for a discussion of the company's capital and exploratory expenditures.

Upstream

Reserves

Refer to Table V beginning on page FS-69 for a tabulation of the company’s proved net liquids (including crude oil, condensate, natural gas liquids and synthetic oil) and natural gas reserves by geographic area, at the beginning of 2014 and each year-end from 2014 through 2016. Reserves governance, technologies used in establishing proved reserves additions, and major changes to proved reserves by geographic area for the three-year period ended December 31, 2016, are summarized in the discussion for Table V. Discussion is also provided regarding the nature of, status of, and planned future activities associated with the development of proved undeveloped reserves. The company recognizes reserves for projects with various development periods, sometimes exceeding five years. The external factors that impact the duration of a project include scope and complexity, remoteness or adverse operating conditions, infrastructure constraints, and contractual limitations.