ExxonMobil’s Q3 Profit Falls, Net Income Jumps 15%

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Exxon Mobil’s third-quarter profit declined compared with last year when the oil giant put up record numbers as oil prices soared, but net income jumped 15 per cent compared with the previous quarter. It also raised its quarterly dividend.

Lofty crude prices have fuelled a shopping spree this year as Exxon acquired pipeline operator Denbury, the beneficiary of changes in US climate policy, for $4.9 billion in July, and then a few weeks ago the company said that it would buy Pioneer for $60 billion.

Exxon isn’t alone. Earlier this week, Chevron said it would spend more than $50 billion to acquire Hess, Bloomberg said.

Exxon Mobil earned $9.07 billion, or $2.25 per share in the period, compared to $19.66 billion, or $4.68 per share, a year earlier.

Revenue slipped to $90.76 billion from $112.07 billion, but still topped Wall Street’s estimate of $89.29 billion. Production also dipped 0.8 per cent to 3,688 thousand oil-equivalent barrels per day.

Exxon said at the weekend that it delivered its best ever third-quarter global refinery throughput at 4.2 million barrels per day.

“We delivered another quarter of strong operational performance, earnings and cash flows, adding nearly 80,000 net oil-equivalent barrels per day to support global supply,” Chairman and CEO Darren Woods said in a prepared statement.