News about Exxon

One slide in ExxonMobil's investor presentation after its third-quarter earnings neatly explains the financial situation of the integrated oil majors. The article connects this to Exxon, Chevron and BP's earnings that beat forecasts.

BP reported third-quarter underlying replacement cost profit of $8.5 billion, versus $2.2 billion a year earlier and an LSEG consensus of $6.2 billion, while its stock barely moved. Gains were driven by stronger gas and marketing trading and 'significantly higher' realized refining margins, with its indicator margin at $46.70 a barrel versus $29.60 in the second quarter. Operating cash flow for the first nine months reached $28.55 billion, and net debt fell to $13.87 billion from $26.05 billion. WTI crude stood at $103.37 on October 27, up 21.3% over the past month, and Exxon and Chevron, which also run large refineries, were set to report on October 30. The author expects their refining results to look strong but says share moves will depend on fourth-quarter guidance, noting BP's CEO warned refining margins are starting to soften.

On October 15, Jim Cramer told Mad Money viewers to swap Exxon for Chevron unless tax implications apply, and both companies report third-quarter results before the open on October 30. Year to date, Exxon shares are up 48.4% and Chevron shares 47.0%. In the second quarter, Exxon reported earnings of $14.5 billion and operating cash flow of $23.6 billion despite the Middle East conflict temporarily knocking out about 10% of upstream production, while Chevron reported adjusted EPS of $6.06 and adjusted free cash flow of $15.4 billion. Consensus estimates are $3.98 in EPS for Exxon and $4.83 for Chevron. The article says Exxon's upstream volumes and refining margins, and Chevron's free cash flow and Project Kilby timeline, will help determine whether the call holds.