(RTTNews) -  Oil and natural gas producer EOG Resources, Inc. (EOG: News ) on Tuesday reported a 13% decline in profit for the fourth quarter from last year, as higher revenues and one-time gains were more than offset by a 26% increase in expenses, including marketing costs. Adjusted earnings per share for the quarter increased, but missed analysts' consensus estimate. For fiscal year 2010, EOG continues to target 13% organic production growth over the prior year. The company also announced an increase in quarterly dividend.

The Houston, Texas-based based company's fourth-quarter net income available to common stockholders was $400.43 million or $1.58 per share, down from $461.47 million or $1.84 per share in the year-ago quarter.

The results for the latest quarter include a non-cash gain of $244.25 million after tax, or $0.97 per share on a property exchange in the Rocky Mountain area, a gain of $91.82 million after-tax or $0.36 per share related to the disposition of crude oil assets and surrounding acreage in California, and a previously disclosed non-cash net gain of $16.7 million after-tax, or $0.07 per share on the mark-to-market of financial commodity transactions.

On an adjusted basis, non-GAAP net income available to common stockholders for the latest quarter rose to $234.33 million or $0.92 per share from $185.96 million or $0.74 per share in the year-ago quarter. On average, twenty five analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.98 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Net operating revenues for the quarter grew 8.6% to $1.77 billion from $1.63 billion in the same quarter last year. Wall Street analysts had a consensus revenue estimate for the quarter of $1.33 billion.
Total operating expenses for the quarter were $1.11 billion, up from $882.55 million a year ago. Of this, impairments rose 56.3% to $123.91 million from $79.27 million in the prior-year quarter, while marketing costs soared to $159.56 million from $12.43 million last year.

Operating income for the latest quarter declined to $654.11 million from $751.18 million in the year-ago period.

For the fourth quarter, the company's total production increased 0.9% to 194.9 billion cubic feet equivalent from 193.1 billion cubic feet equivalent last year. Natural gas equivalent volumes for the quarter totaled 2,119 million cubic feet equivalent per day, or MMcfed, up from 2,099 MMcfed for the year-earlier period.

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