Big Oil’s tight pockets

With record profits, some investors believe dividend boosts are in order. But experts say managers at the majors are making the prudent choice in holding back.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Like a big fat pig roasting on the spit, Big Oil’s record profits have got investors salivating to carve up the cash pile.

Faced with soaring production costs and limited access to new oil fields, managers at the integrated companies have mostly complied, returning tens if not hundreds of billions of dollars to shareholders over the past few years.

The thing is, much of these givebacks have come in the form of stock repurchases, which generally raise the value of shares outstanding. That’s great for some investors – such as executives with loads of stock options or funds that buy and sell shares on a daily basis.

But it has left some small investors, in it for the long haul and hoping for a juicy jump in dividend payouts, feeling passed over at the picnic.

CNN