Post by wvumaryjane on Feb 1, 2008 9:27:14 GMT -5
Exxon shatters profit records
Oil giant makes corporate history by booking $11.7 billion in quarterly profit; earns $1,300 a second in 2007.NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Exxon Mobil made history on Friday by reporting the highest quarterly and annual profits ever for a U.S. company.
Exxon (XOM, Fortune 500) shares gained nearly 2% in pre-market trading on the results, which were underpinned by soaring crude prices.
Exxon, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, said fourth-quarter net income rose 14% to $11.66 billion, or $2.13 per share. That's up from $10.25 billion, or $1.76 per share, in the year-ago period.
That tops Exxon's previous quarterly profit record of $10.7 billion, set in the fourth quarter of 2005, which also was a record for any U.S. corporation.
Exxon also set an annual profit record by earning $40.61 billion last year, or nearly $1,300 per second.
The company's full-year results exceeded its previous record of $39.5 billion in 2006.
In the fourth quarter, revenue rose 29.5% from a year ago to $116.64 billion.
Analysts were looking for the company to report quarterly profit of $10.36 billion on revenue of $114.9 billion, according to earnings tracker Thomson Financial.
Exxon's earnings are sure to draw fire from consumer rights groups, who contend the oil industry is deliberately restricting supply and profiting on the back of U.S. motorists. They have previously called for a windfall profit tax on oil firms, and have proposed breaking up the big oil companies created during the 1990s merger wave.
Exxon attributed its impressive results to strong performance across its divisions, but a large part of the surge in profit can be attributed to soaring oil prices.
Last year, crude prices skyrocketed nearly 60%. That surge helped prices break through the $100 a barrel mark for the first time ever early last month.
Natural gas prices have also increased compared to last year, albeit marginally.
But costs have also increased for the oil companies, and they haven't been able to make as much selling gasoline, which is why profits haven't risen as rapidly as crude prices.
Exxon isn't the only oil giant to report impressive earnings. No. 2 Chevron (CVX, Fortune 500) also reported a jump in quarterly profit on Friday. Conoco (COP, Fortune 500), the nation's third largest oil company, trounced profit estimates by nearly 25% when it reported last week.
money.cnn.com/2008/02/01/news/companies/exxon_earnings/index.htm?cnn=yes
Oil giant makes corporate history by booking $11.7 billion in quarterly profit; earns $1,300 a second in 2007.NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Exxon Mobil made history on Friday by reporting the highest quarterly and annual profits ever for a U.S. company.
Exxon (XOM, Fortune 500) shares gained nearly 2% in pre-market trading on the results, which were underpinned by soaring crude prices.
Exxon, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, said fourth-quarter net income rose 14% to $11.66 billion, or $2.13 per share. That's up from $10.25 billion, or $1.76 per share, in the year-ago period.
That tops Exxon's previous quarterly profit record of $10.7 billion, set in the fourth quarter of 2005, which also was a record for any U.S. corporation.
Exxon also set an annual profit record by earning $40.61 billion last year, or nearly $1,300 per second.
The company's full-year results exceeded its previous record of $39.5 billion in 2006.
In the fourth quarter, revenue rose 29.5% from a year ago to $116.64 billion.
Analysts were looking for the company to report quarterly profit of $10.36 billion on revenue of $114.9 billion, according to earnings tracker Thomson Financial.
Exxon's earnings are sure to draw fire from consumer rights groups, who contend the oil industry is deliberately restricting supply and profiting on the back of U.S. motorists. They have previously called for a windfall profit tax on oil firms, and have proposed breaking up the big oil companies created during the 1990s merger wave.
Exxon attributed its impressive results to strong performance across its divisions, but a large part of the surge in profit can be attributed to soaring oil prices.
Last year, crude prices skyrocketed nearly 60%. That surge helped prices break through the $100 a barrel mark for the first time ever early last month.
Natural gas prices have also increased compared to last year, albeit marginally.
But costs have also increased for the oil companies, and they haven't been able to make as much selling gasoline, which is why profits haven't risen as rapidly as crude prices.
Exxon isn't the only oil giant to report impressive earnings. No. 2 Chevron (CVX, Fortune 500) also reported a jump in quarterly profit on Friday. Conoco (COP, Fortune 500), the nation's third largest oil company, trounced profit estimates by nearly 25% when it reported last week.
money.cnn.com/2008/02/01/news/companies/exxon_earnings/index.htm?cnn=yes
