Crescent Point Energy Corp. reported strong results from its recently acquired Kaybob Duvernay assets in Alberta, along with soaring profits helped by higher oil and gas prices.

The Calgary-based oil producer reported Thursday a fourth-quarter profit of $121.6 million, or 21 cents per share, compared with a loss of $51.2 million or 10 cents per share one year ago.

The company's oil and gas sales totalled $900.4 million, up from $447.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2020. Crescent Point said production in the quarter averaged 130,407 barrels of oil equivalent per day, up from 111,217 a year earlier.

The company's average selling price was $75.05 per barrel of oil equivalent, up from $43.76 in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Helping to boost the company's results was the performance of the Kaybob Duvernay play, which Crescent Point acquired last year from Shell Canada for $900 million. 

Crescent Point recently brought onstream its first fully operated five-well pad in the Kaybob Duvernay, with approximately 30 days of production data now available. So far, well costs in the region have come in 20 per cent lower than anticipated, and that combined with higher oil prices means the company now expects the Kaybob wells to achieve returns of 120 per cent and reach payout in less than a year.

"This is a great achievement that we have delivered in a very short period of time and that we will be sure to build on moving forward," said chief operating officer Ryan Gritzfeldt, on a conference call with analysts.

"Given these strong returns, we have made the Kaybob Duvernay our largest focus area in our 2022 capital budget."

In a research note, ATB Capital Markets analyst Patrick O'Rourke said the initial operated Duvernay results show "intriguing promise."

"At the time of the acquisition we highlighted well cost improvements as the greatest opportunity to improve the rate of return on the acquisition and the company appears to be delivering on that," O'Rourke wrote.

Crescent Point said it now expects to generate free cash flow of approximately $1.1 billion in 2022, and will meet its near-term net debt target in the next six months at current commodity prices. The oil producer is exploring disposition opportunities for certain non-core assets, management said Thursday.

On an adjusted basis, Crescent Point's net earnings from operations for the fourth quarter of 2021 totalled 27 cents per share, up from 16 cents a year earlier.