NEW YORK (AP) — Hess Corp. said Wednesday that second-quarter profit fell 9.6 percent on lower oil prices, but the company still topped expectations as it boosted production in North Dakota's Bakken shale fields.

Net income fell to $549 million, or $1.61 per share, from $607 million, or $1.78 per share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell 5.1 percent to $9.31 billion.

Analysts expected the company to earn $1.38 per share on $10.41 billion in revenue, according to FactSet.

Hess said it produced 15 percent more oil and gas than a year ago. Production in the Bakken formation more than doubled from a year ago, and the company resumed operations in Libya after the civil unrest there.

But Hess' worldwide average selling price for crude oil fell to $86.86 per barrel from $97.20 per barrel.

The company earned an $8 million profit in refining and selling finished petroleum products, reversing a year-ago loss of $39 million in that business.

Shares of New York-based Hess rose 41 cents to $44.34 in morning trading.