Why did Saudi Aramco go public?

Saudi Aramco was originally planning on going public to raise capital for the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), which it was expected to join. At the time, it was anticipated that the listing would push the fund’s value up to $3 trillion. However, it didn’t join the PIF and decided to focus its IPO on raising money for its own diversification. In doing so, it became the largest company in the world by market capitalisation.

What is the outlook for Saudi Aramco?

The outlook for Saudi Aramco is mixed, as a few factors should be taken into consideration when forecasting the future of the company. The short-term outlook is based mainly on its exposure to oil and,– therefore,, the oil price. If there is an uptrend, Saudi Aramco’s share price could surge. However, fears of a recession in the US might have a negative impact on petroleum demand.

The long-term outlook will depend on the company’s ability to diversify and move away from industry trends. It has already started its expansion by way of the recent acquisition of a 70% stake in Saudi petrochemicals giant SABIC.

How has Saudi Aramco been performing?

Saudi Aramco has been growing its revenue every year, while cutting production costs and reducing its carbon footprint. In 2017, net income was $75.9 billion, increasing to $110.1 billion in 2018. The half-year report for 2019 revealed net income of $46.9 billion. The company has managed to cut extraction costs of crude oil to just $7.50 a barrel and overheads are only $1.50 per barrel. Oil production in 2019 is expected to reach 12.5 million barrels a day.

Who are Saudi Aramco’s competitors?

Saudi Aramco’s competitors include Shell (£223 billion), BP (£102 billion), Chevron (£224 billion) and Exxon Mobil (£295 billion), but it trumps all these companies in terms of market cap and revenue. Surprisingly, Saudi Aramco was formed much later than its competitors, it has the least number of employees and it is the last conglomerate between the five to have listed.

Saudi Aramco management team

There are seven key executives on Saudi Aramco’s corporate management team