California Resources Corp (CRC) · Nov 2, 2026 · Earnings

California Resources earnings beat as costs rise and hedges hit

Beat — Adjusted EPS $1.17 vs ~$0.94–$1.00 consensus

California Resources’ Q3 earnings beat consensus on adjusted EPS and cash flow, while higher operating costs and commodity hedges remain key offsets.

California Resources is moving from an acquisition-heavy buildout toward optimizing an integrated California oil, gas, midstream, power and carbon-management platform; its stated strategy is to lower costs, improve capital efficiency and develop CCS and related infrastructure.

The quarter beat the market’s adjusted-earnings bar. Adjusted diluted EPS was $1.17 versus published estimates around $0.94–$1.00, while adjusted EBITDAX was $341 million and free cash flow was $147 million. The earnings beat is real, but it came alongside a reported $315 million GAAP loss driven largely by commodity-derivative marks rather than a collapse in underlying production. The filing says the net loss included a $540 million non-cash loss from changes in derivative fair value.

MetricQ3 2026Q3 2025Consensus
Adjusted diluted EPS (Financial Results)$1.17$1.46$0.94–$1.00
Adjusted EBITDAX (Financial Results)$341M$338M
Net production (Production Statistics)152 MBoe/d137 MBoe/d
Free cash flow (Free Cash Flow)$147M$188M
Operating costs (Statements of Operations)$386M$316M

Operations were healthy, but not clean. Total production rose to 152 MBoe/d from 137 MBoe/d a year earlier, and the filing says NGL and natural-gas production exceeded guidance by roughly 1 MBoe/d, helped by the Belridge–Elk Hills connection and higher gas processing and NGL recovery. 〔0〕 But operating costs jumped to $386 million from $316 million, and management explicitly said costs were higher than anticipated because of more expensive gas used in steamflood operations and increased workover activity. 〔1〕

The strategic transition advanced, but most of the long-term value remains execution-dependent. CRC closed the Crimson midstream acquisition, agreed to sell its Uinta Basin assets for about $90 million, and signed a non-binding Bloom Energy MOU targeting at least 1 GW of fuel-cell power paired with CCS. Those actions sharpen the California-focused platform, but the Bloom project still requires definitive agreements, permits and final investment decisions. The company also raised its annual dividend target by about 4% to $1.68 per share, while liquidity declined to $1.315 billion from $1.401 billion at year-end. 〔2〕

Bottom line: CRC delivered a genuine adjusted-earnings beat with better production and continued cash generation, strengthening the near-term operating story. The offset is that cost inflation and weaker free cash flow show the new optimization phase still has work to do; this is a modest advance, not a wholesale change in the thesis.

What to watch next

2027 guidance with fourth-quarter earnings release

Original filing on SEC EDGAR

More California Resources Corp news

California Resources earnings beat as costs rise and hedges hit | CRC Stock News
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