Chevron Corporation reported adjusted first-quarter earnings of $2.18 per share, beating analysts’ expectations of $2.15. The impressive results were driven by a stronger-than-expected U.S. natural gas production, which surpassed the consensus estimate of 2,666 million cubic feet per day, reaching 2,859 MMcf/d.”

The outperformance came from higher-than-expected natural gas output in our key upstream segment,” Chevron said in a statement. However, the company’s profit declined compared to last year’s adjusted earnings of $2.93, mainly due to lower oil price realizations and weaker refining margins.

Revenue for the quarter stood at $47.6 billion, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $48.7 billion, reflecting a 2.3% year-over-year decrease. Despite this, the company maintained strong cash flow, posting $5.2 billion from operations.

Chevron’s upstream segment recorded a slight production increase of 0.2% year-over-year, driven by higher output from the Permian basin, Kazakhstan, and the Gulf of America.

However, international production fell by 3.2%, partially offsetting domestic gains.As of March 31, the company had $4.6 billion in cash reserves and a debt-to-total capitalization ratio of 16.6%. Chevron continued its shareholder return strategy with $3 billion in dividends and $3.9 billion in share buybacks.