Devon Energy Corp. posted a fourth-quarter profit that easily beat Wall Street forecasts and said its oil and gas reserves grew 20 percent last year, even as production reached a record high.

Devon, which is in the midst of a restructuring to focus on its onshore operations, said it expects after-tax proceeds of $4.5 billion to $7.5 billion this year from the sale of its offshore properties and properties outside North America.

Profit in the fourth quarter was $667 million, or $1.49 per share, compared with a loss of $6.8 billion, or $15.42 per share, a year earlier, when it took a massive charge to write down the value of its oil and gas assets.

Excluding one-time items, profit was $1.60 per per share, far higher than analysts' average forecast of $1.25, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue fell 4 percent to $2.46 billion

Devon increased its North American onshore estimated proved reserves by 20 percent to a record 2,641 million oil-equivalent barrels as of the end of 2009, adding 669 million BOE.