HOUSTON, Nov 3 (Reuters) - El Paso Corp, a natural gas pipeline and production company, said on Tuesday it will cut its dividend 80 percent and sell up to $500 million in assets during 2010 to boost liquidity.
El Paso's shares fell 5.5 percent after the close of regular trading.
'Since last summer, we've acted aggressively to deal with the challenges in capital and commodity markets, building liquidity significantly,' Doug Foshee, chief executive officer of El Paso, said in a statement.
The quarterly dividend has been cut to 1 cent per share from 5 cent per share. The dividend is payable Jan. 4, 2009 to shareholders of record on Dec. 4, 2008.
El Paso, based in Houston, said it has also identified additional cost savings of $150 million, a portion of which will be realized in 2009.
Money raised from the planned cost cutting and asset sales will be used to fund El Paso's pipeline business and unconventional natural gas drilling, the company said in a statement.
An El Paso spokesman was not immediately available to provide additional details.
El Paso also reported a sharp drop in third-quarter net income on Tuesday, as a steep decline in gas prices hurt its exploration arm.
The company's stock traded at $9.26 after the bell, down from a New York Stock Exchange close of $9.80.
(Reporting by Anna Driver in Houston; editing by Andre Grenon, Bernard Orr) Keywords: ELPASO (anna.driver@thomsonreuters.com +1 713 210 8509; Reuters Messaging: anna.driver.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
El Paso's shares fell 5.5 percent after the close of regular trading.
'Since last summer, we've acted aggressively to deal with the challenges in capital and commodity markets, building liquidity significantly,' Doug Foshee, chief executive officer of El Paso, said in a statement.
The quarterly dividend has been cut to 1 cent per share from 5 cent per share. The dividend is payable Jan. 4, 2009 to shareholders of record on Dec. 4, 2008.
El Paso, based in Houston, said it has also identified additional cost savings of $150 million, a portion of which will be realized in 2009.
Money raised from the planned cost cutting and asset sales will be used to fund El Paso's pipeline business and unconventional natural gas drilling, the company said in a statement.
An El Paso spokesman was not immediately available to provide additional details.
El Paso also reported a sharp drop in third-quarter net income on Tuesday, as a steep decline in gas prices hurt its exploration arm.
The company's stock traded at $9.26 after the bell, down from a New York Stock Exchange close of $9.80.
(Reporting by Anna Driver in Houston; editing by Andre Grenon, Bernard Orr) Keywords: ELPASO (anna.driver@thomsonreuters.com +1 713 210 8509; Reuters Messaging: anna.driver.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
