Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE:XOM, XETRA:XONA) beat quarterly profit expectations on Friday as higher oil and gas production and improving refining margins helped offset the impact of lower crude prices.
The US oil major reported adjusted earnings of $1.71 per share, topping analysts’ expectations by $0.02. Revenue came in at $82.31 billion, about $640 million above estimates, despite falling 1.3% from a year earlier.
Net income for the quarter was $6.5 billion.
Exxon said cash flow from operations reached $52 billion, supported by strong upstream performance and record throughput across its refining network. Production averaged about 5 million oil-equivalent barrels per day during the period, while full-year net production reached a more than 40-year high of roughly 4.7 million barrels per day.
The company said it has generated $15.1 billion in cumulative structural cost savings since 2019, more than all other international oil companies combined. Exxon added that it delivered an additional $3 billion in structural savings over the past year.
Return on capital employed has averaged about 11% since 2019, which Exxon said leads the industry.
Growth from its Permian Basin and Guyana assets drove record output, helping to offset weaker commodity prices. Refining margins also improved compared with earlier periods, supporting earnings.
“ExxonMobil is a fundamentally stronger company than it was just a few years ago,” CEO Darren Woods said in a statement.
The company returned $9.5 billion to shareholders during the quarter, including $4.4 billion in dividends and $5.1 billion in share buybacks.
Exxon said it expects capital spending of between $27 billion and $29 billion in 2026 as it continues to invest in modernization, efficiency improvements and acquisitions.