Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell, the world’s biggest oil companies, posted gains in third-quarter earnings after crude’s surge to an all-time high made up for slumping production.
Exxon Mobil netted $14.8 billion, up 58 percent from a year earlier, according to a statement Thursday by the Irving, Texas-based company. Profit excluding one-time costs and gains was the highest ever for a U.S. corporation. Shell, based in The Hague, said its net income rose 22 percent to $8.45 billion. Both companies exceeded analysts’ earnings estimates.
Oil futures in New York averaged more than $118 a barrel, up 57 percent from a year earlier. After reaching a high-water mark above $147 a barrel in July, oil tumbled $80 as growth in fuel demand slowed to the lowest rate in 15 years. Gross domestic product in the U.S., the largest oil-consuming nation, contracted at a 0.3 percent pace in the third quarter, the biggest decline since 2001.
“I think we’re going to see obviously the peak here, and then the fourth quarter will be significantly lower unless things turn around fast,” said Matti Teittinen, an analyst with IHS Herold in Boston.
Exxon Mobil’s per-share profit excluding such items as a gain on a pipeline sale was $2.59, 18 cents higher than the average estimate of 13 analysts compiled by Bloomberg. Shell’s profit excluding such items as gains from inventories was $8.04 billion, 9.1 percent higher than the average estimate of seven analysts compiled by Bloomberg.
“The oil majors are coming all above expectations, which means they have resilient qualities,” said Jason Kenney, an analyst at ING Wholesale Banking in Edinburgh. “They show the benefit of being an integrated company, and they have the flexibility to weather the storm.”
Hurricanes Ike and Gustav, which struck the U.S. Gulf Coast last month, might have contributed to the positive surprises by leading to wider profit margins on refined fuels, said Philip Weiss, an analyst at Argus Research in New York.
