Exxon Mobil beat forecasts on Friday as rising oil prices fueled a record-breaking quarterly profit that came close to equal that of technology behemoth Apple.
As a result of skyrocketing natural gas costs and rising oil prices, it substantially outperformed recently raised Wall Street projections with a third-quarter net profit of $19.66 billion, surpassing Apple’s $20.7 billion net profit for the same time.
However, Exxon Mobil was the largest publicly traded U.S. firm by market value in 2013. In fact, Apple now holds that title.
Moreover, he largest oil producer in the U.S. announced a profit per share of $4.68, above Wall Street’s average estimate of $3.89, thanks to a sharp increase in natural gas revenues, persistently high oil prices, and robust fuel sales.
Furthermore, Exxon moved far ahead of competitors Shell and TotalEnergies with third-quarter profits that were nearly twice as large. Also, it had previously led record increases by the five oil major producers in the previous quarter. Indeed, its advantages were facilitated by its controversial decision to increase its reliance on fossil fuels as European rivals turned to renewables.
According to Chief Financial Officer Kathryn Mikells, “Our investments over the past five years, particularly during the lows of the pandemic, are truly driving our profits now.”
In the first nine months of this year, Exxon made $43 billion, which is 19% more than it did during the same period in 2008, when oil prices were at an all-time high of $140 a barrel.
According to Mikells, Exxon will continue its $30 billion share repurchase program through 2023 while raising dividends. It announced a fourth-quarter dividend per share of 91 cents on Friday, an increase of 3 cents, and said it will distribute $15 billion to shareholders this year.
As oil prices hovered above $96 per barrel this week, investors drove up Exxon shares to a record intraday high of $109.58.
Nevertheless, Exxon reported that its Permian Basin oil and gas output is approaching 560,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed), a record. This is an increase of 50,000 barrels per day or 11% from the previous year.
