Phillips 66 Issues Letter to Shareholders
Confirms Elliott Investment Management’s Nomination of Director Candidates
The Company also confirmed Elliott has nominated seven directors for election to Phillips 66’s Board of Directors (the “Board�) at the Company’s 2025 Annual Meeting. As the Company disclosed on February 19, the Board will present its recommendation regarding the director nominations with its definitive proxy statement to be filed with the
Following the proper procedures and in accordance with the Company’s By-Laws, the Board intends to put forward another management proposal to declassify the Board at our 2025 Annual Meeting and notes that it has done so five times since its 2015 Annual Meeting.
Fellow Shareholders:
At Phillips 66, we are committed to maximizing value for our shareholders through operational excellence and disciplined capital allocation.
We have a strong track record since our formation in 2012. We have built out a large-scale, competitive, high return Midstream platform, enhanced our chemicals position through Chevron Phillips Chemical Company (CPChem) and have made sustainable improvement to refining operations. These actions have positioned Phillips 66 as the leading energy business it is today.
Moreover, these actions have delivered substantial value for our shareholders. This includes total shareholder returns of
We Have Made Significant Progress on our Strategic Priorities
Phillips 66 has taken substantial action to deliver on our objectives that we laid out in 2022, and further enhanced in 2023. Our actions have led to significant progress and achievements, enhancing shareholder returns and operational efficiency. We are a business that will always act decisively when we can realize sustainable long-term growth to the benefit of our shareholders and all stakeholders.
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Delivering strong total shareholder returns of
65% 2 since Mark Lashier became President and CEO of Phillips 66 on July 1, 2022, significantly outperforming the S&P 500 Energy Index (33% 2) and our proxy peer group median (22% 2) -
Returning significant capital to shareholders with
in share repurchases and dividends from July 2022 through year-end 2024, exceeding our shareholder distribution target$13.6 billion -
Reducing refining costs by
per barrel since 2022 and committing to continued improvement$1 -
Maximizing value from our wellhead-to-market strategy by capturing
of run rate synergies from our DCP Midstream acquisition (above our initial target of$500 million ) and increasing our Midstream segment’s adjusted EBITDA by$300 million since 2022$1.5 billion -
Maintaining our financial resilience with strong investment grade credit ratings (A3 / BBB+), engaging in a business optimization that has resulted in over
in non-core asset divestitures to date and capturing significant cost reductions since 2022 totaling$3 billion on a run-rate basis$1.2 billion - Earning industry recognition for our exemplary safety performance in Midstream, Refining and Chemicals in 2022 and 2023
We Continue to Strengthen Our Business and Our Board
Below is an update on a number of our key strategic objectives and the actions underway:
Optimizing Our Business
We have demonstrated a commitment to evolving the business over time. We continue to high-grade our assets and capitalize on our growth platform to generate strong returns and significant free cash flow. We have simplified our business with over
Maintaining a Culture of Continuous Improvement, Operational Excellence and Cost Discipline
Our culture of continuous improvement demands, and will continue to demand, that we consistently and rigorously evaluate opportunities to optimize our cost structure and operational efficiency to maximize value for shareholders. While we have successfully reduced refining costs per barrel since 2022, as noted above, we recognize that we have more work to do in operations and costs. We are prioritizing our most competitive refineries and continuing to identify and execute cost-savings opportunities. Recently, we announced that we would cease operations at our Los Angeles Refinery in the fourth quarter of 2025, which will allow us to further high-grade our business. We continue to evaluate additional opportunities for efficiency enhancements.
Returning Cash to Our Shareholders
As previously outlined, our 2025�2027 strategic targets include returning over
Ensuring Strong Corporate Governance and Board Oversight
We recognize the importance of strong corporate governance and have taken proactive steps to ensure that our Board remains aligned with shareholder interests and is best positioned to oversee the Company’s strategy. Over the past four years, we have welcomed five new independent directors to the Board, including two in 2024. Bob Pease, a director we identified in partnership with Elliott Investment Management (“Elliott�), brings extensive experience in refining and the energy industry broadly. Grace Puma, our most recent addition to the Board, brings strong supply chain experience. Additionally, as we have many times before in 2015, 2016, 2018, 2021 and 2023, we will be seeking shareholder approval of a management proposal to declassify the Board at our 2025 Annual Meeting. Our Board is committed to an evolution that will be responsive to shareholders and beneficial to the business for the long-term.
We are Listening to Our Shareholders
We regularly engage with our shareholders through our cross-functional shareholder engagement program to obtain feedback and respond to investor input. In 2024, we engaged with shareholders representing over
Despite several attempts to reach agreement on adding another director to Phillips 66’s Board, Elliott has chosen to forego constructive dialogue with us and launch their activist playbook. This included a series of attacks and proposals regarding the monetization of certain business units and, for the first time in our discussions, floating the idea of a separation.
Nevertheless, we remain fully committed to constructive engagement and finding a path forward with Elliott that will benefit all shareholders.
On Monday, March 3, our team travelled to
The Board continuously and aggressively evaluates the portfolio and other alternatives with a view to maximizing long-term shareholder value � and is willing to take decisive action to achieve this goal. As always, we seriously and comprehensively review shareholder feedback with a focus on creating long-term value.
The Bottom Line
Phillips 66 is dedicated to transparency, accountability, and sustainable value creation for shareholders.
We have made substantial progress and realize there is more work to be done. We will continue to pursue opportunities that strengthen our position to the benefit of our shareholders. We look forward to your input and to provide further updates on our progress.
Sincerely,
Mark E. Lashier
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Glenn F. Tilton
Lead Independent Director
1 Total Shareholder Return (“TSR�) from May 1, 2012 to March 4, 2025. |
2 Total Shareholder Return (“TSR�) from June 30, 2022 to March 4, 2025. |
About Phillips 66
Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) is a leading integrated downstream energy provider that manufactures, transports and markets products that drive the global economy. The company’s portfolio includes Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, Marketing and Specialties, and Renewable Fuels businesses. Headquartered in
Forward-Looking Statements
This document contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws relating to Phillips 66’s operations, strategy and performance. Words such as “anticipated,� "commitments," “estimated,� “expected,� “planned,� “scheduled,� “targeted,� “believe,� “continue,� “intend,� “will,� “would,� “objective,� “goal,� “project,� “efforts,� “strategies� and similar expressions that convey the prospective nature of events or outcomes generally indicate forward-looking statements. However, the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements included in this news release are based on management’s expectations, estimates and projections as of the date they are made. These statements are not guarantees of future events or performance, and you should not unduly rely on them as they involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecast in such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements include: changes in governmental policies or laws that relate to our operations, including regulations that seek to limit or restrict refining, marketing and midstream operations or regulate profits, pricing, or taxation of our products or feedstocks, or other regulations that restrict feedstock imports or product exports; our ability to timely obtain or maintain permits necessary for projects; fluctuations in NGL, crude oil, refined petroleum, renewable fuels and natural gas prices, and refining, marketing and petrochemical margins; the effects of any widespread public health crisis and its negative impact on commercial activity and demand for refined petroleum or renewable fuels products; changes to worldwide government policies relating to renewable fuels and greenhouse gas emissions that adversely affect programs including the renewable fuel standards program, low carbon fuel standards and tax credits for renewable fuels; potential liability from pending or future litigation; liability for remedial actions, including removal and reclamation obligations under existing or future environmental regulations; unexpected changes in costs for constructing, modifying or operating our facilities; our ability to successfully complete, or any material delay in the completion of, any asset disposition, acquisition, shutdown or conversion that we have announced or may pursue, including receipt of any necessary regulatory approvals or permits related thereto; unexpected difficulties in manufacturing, refining or transporting our products; the level and success of drilling and production volumes around our midstream assets; risks and uncertainties with respect to the actions of actual or potential competitive suppliers and transporters of refined petroleum products, renewable fuels or specialty products; lack of, or disruptions in, adequate and reliable transportation for our products; failure to complete construction of capital projects on time or within budget; our ability to comply with governmental regulations or make capital expenditures to maintain compliance with laws; limited access to capital or significantly higher cost of capital related to illiquidity or uncertainty in the domestic or international financial markets, which may also impact our ability to repurchase shares and declare and pay dividends; potential disruption of our operations due to accidents, weather events, including as a result of climate change, acts of terrorism or cyberattacks; general domestic and international economic and political developments, including armed hostilities (such as the
Additional Information
Phillips 66 plans to file a proxy statement and accompanying WHITE proxy card with the
Certain Information Regarding Participants
Phillips 66, its directors, certain of its executive officers and employees may be deemed to be participants in connection with the solicitation of proxies from Phillips 66 shareholders in connection with the matters to be considered at the 2025 Annual Meeting. Information regarding the names of such directors and executive officers and their respective interests in Phillips 66, by securities holdings or otherwise, is available in Phillips 66’s proxy statement for the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders, which was filed with the SEC on April 3, 2024 (the �2024 Proxy Statement�), including in the sections captioned “Executive Compensation Program Overview,� “Director Compensation,� “Compensation Discussion and Analysis,� “Executive Compensation Tables� and “Beneficial Ownership of Phillips 66 Securities.� To the extent that Phillips 66’s directors and executive officers have acquired or disposed of securities holdings since the applicable “as of� date disclosed in the 2024 Proxy Statement, such transactions have been or will be reflected on Statements of Changes in Ownership of Securities on Form 4 or Initial Statements of Beneficial Ownership of Securities on Form 3 filed with the SEC, including: Form 4s filed by Gregory Hayes on April 2, 2024, May 2, 2024, June 4, 2024, July 2, 2024, August 2, 2024, September 4, 2024, October 2, 2024, November 4, 2024, December 4, 2024, January 3, 2025, January 17, 2025, February 4, 2025 and March 4, 2025; Form 4s filed by Richard G. Harbison on December 9, 2024, February 11, 2025 and February 13, 2025; Form 4s filed by Mark E. Lashier on April 2, 2024, May 16, 2024, December 9, 2024, February 11, 2025 and February 13, 2025; Form 4 filed by Glenn F. Tilton on January 17, 2025; Form 4s filed by Brian Mandell on December 9, 2024, February 11, 2025 and February 13, 2025; Form 4s filed by Kevin J. Mitchell on August 19, 2024, December 9, 2024, February 11, 2025 and February 13, 2025; Form 4s filed by Zhanna Golodryga on December 9, 2024, February 11, 2025 and February 13, 2025; Form 4 filed by Marna C. Whittington on January 17, 2025; Form 4s filed by Vanessa A. Sutherland on January 21, 2025, February 11, 2025 and February 13, 2025; Form 4 filed by Douglas T. Terreson on January 17, 2025; Form 4 filed by Denise R. Singleton on January 17, 2025; Form 4 filed by Denise L. Ramos on January 17, 2025; Form 4 filed by Julie L. Bushman on January 17, 2025; Form 4 filed by Lisa A. Davis on January 17, 2025; Form 4 filed by John E. Lowe on January 17, 2025; Form 4/A filed by Gary K. Adams on March 20, 2024 and Form 4 filed by Gary K. Adams on January 17, 2025; Form 4 filed by Charles M. Holley on January 17, 2025; Form 4 filed by Robert W. Pease on January 17, 2025; Form 3 filed by Ann M. Kluppel on May 16, 2024 and Form 4s filed by Ann M. Kluppel on December 9, 2024, February 11, 2025 and February 13, 2025; Form 3 filed by Don Baldridge on June 5, 2024 and Form 4s filed by Don Baldridge on December 9, 2024, January 3, 2025, February 13, 2025 and March 3, 2025; Form 3 filed by Grace Puma on October 11, 2024 and Form 4s filed by Grace Puma on October 11, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Additional information can also be found in Phillips 66’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, filed with the SEC on February 21, 2024.
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Source: Phillips 66