APA, Marathon Oil, Ovintiv Boost Returns as Oil Prices Surge

U.S. shale producers continued a streak of returning more cash to shareholders this week on the back of higher oil prices, despite criticism from lawmakers and other officials that they are reaping excessive profits at the expense of consumers.

Marathon Oil Corp. said it returned some $816 million to shareholders during the quarter, while rival Ovintiv Inc. returned roughly $200 million during the second quarter and said it expects to almost double that during the current quarter.

U.S. producer APA Corp. said it had bought back some 7 million shares during the second quarter and an additional 6.9 million in July, totaling some $524 million in purchases.