Eni SpA posted a first-quarter loss that was worse than analysts’ estimates, amid a collapse in crude prices. The Italian oil company’s adjusted net loss was $546 million, compared with a profit of $517 million a year earlier. Analysts had expected a $15 million loss, according to the median of nine estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Production growth fell short of expectations and Eni’s net cash from operating activities fell 56% to $1.7 billion. “Our biggest concern as ever is the cash flow,” Exane BNP Paribas said in a note on Friday. The plunge in crude prices since the middle of 2014 has weighed on oil company profits, forcing them to cut capital spending, slash dividends and postpone or cancel expensive exploration projects. Eni’s results contrast with the better-than-forecast profit reported this week by BP Plc, Statoil ASA and Total SA. Eni’s oil and gas production rose 3.4% from a year earlier to the equivalent of 1.75 million barrels of oil a day, compared with an average forecast of 1.78 million barrels a day by five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.
