[Editor's note: This story was updated at 4:40 a.m. CDT April 26.]

Anadarko Petroleum Corp., which is the target of a bidding war between Occidental Petroleum Corp. and Chevron Corp., beat analysts' estimates for quarterly profit on April 25, fueled by higher sales volume and lower costs.

Occidental made a counterbid for Anadarko's vast shale holdings in the prolific Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico on April 24, offering $57 billion compared with Chevron's roughly $48 billion bid, both including debt.

If Anadarko's board accepts Occidental's offer, it may lead Chevron to raise its bid or the second-largest U.S. oil producer could walk away from the deal with a $1 billion breakup fee.

RELATED: Occidental Petroleum Kicks Off Anadarko Bidding War With Chevron

Average sales volumes of oil, natural gas and NGL rose 11.2% to 715,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) in the first quarter, while total expenses fell 4.4% to $2.38 billion.

This helped the Woodlands, Texas-based company cushion an 11.2% fall in average sales price of oil to $56.51 per barrel.

Anadarko said adjusted net income fell to $259 million in the three months ended March 31 from $279 million.

On a per share basis, the company earned 53 cents per share and beat expectation of 25 cents, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Shares of the company, which have risen 16.2% since Chevron's bid, were trading flat at $71.80 after the bell.

Anadarko has not scheduled an investor conference call to discuss the results.