An Exxon Mobil gas station in Washington, DC, US on Tuesday, November 28, 203.
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Exxon Mobil posted quarterly earnings that beat Wall Street's expectations, but the company's profit fell significantly from the same period a year earlier as oil prices weakened.
On March 11, Exxon declared a first-quarter dividend of 95 cents per share. The company returned $32.4 billion to shareholders in 2023, including $14.9 billion in dividends and $17.4 billion in stock buybacks.
Shares of Exxon rose about 1% in premarket trading.
Here's what Exxon reported for the fourth quarter, compared to what Wall Street expected, based on a survey of analysts at LSEG, formerly Refinitiv:
- Stock Gains: $2.48 adjusted and $2.21 expected
- Revenue: $84.3 billion and $85.2 billion expected
Exxon reported net income of $7.63 billion, or $1.91 per share, in the final three months of 2023, down 40% from a profit of $12.75 billion, or $3.09 per share, reported in the same quarter in 2022.
Profits were hurt by a $2 billion curtailment charge due to regulatory issues preventing the return of production and distribution in California. Excluding those charges, Exxon earned $2.48 a share, beating Wall Street's expectations of $2.21.
Crude oil prices remain volatile in 2023, with West Texas Intermediate and Brent falling more than 10% year-on-year as China's economy weakens and record US oil production.
Exxon's shares hit a 2023 closing high of $120.20 on Sept. 27, when oil prices hit a peak, but as crude pulled back, the company's shares ended the year down 16% from that high.
Exxon's profit from its oil and gas division fell to $4.1 billion in the quarter, down 49% from $8.2 billion in the year-earlier period. The company's energy products profit fell 21% to $3.2 billion compared to $4.07 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Exxon forecast production of 3.73 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2023, largely flat from the previous year. Production in the Permian Basin and Guyana is up 18% over 2022, the company said.
The oil giant agreed to buy shale rival Pioneer Natural Resources in October for about $60 billion in an all-stock deal. The deal is expected to close in the first half of this year.
