American multinational, ExxonMobil Corporation, announced Friday that it made US$7.9 billion or US$1.94 per share during the 2023 second quarter. This represents a US$3.7 billion decline in profits compared to its US$11.6 billion earnings for the first quarter.
When compared to the second quarter performance of 2022, it shows an even steeper decline in profits as the company had generated an additional US$10 billion, bringing total earnings then to US$17.9 billion.
Exxon said during its second-quarter earnings call that the dip in profits was due to lower natural gas realisations and industry refining margins.
Be that as it may, the oil giant still raked in a whopping US$19.5 billion for the first half of 2023.
In terms of cash flow from operations, Exxon said this totaled US$9.4 billion. With respect to capital and exploration expenditures, Exxon said this was US$6.2 billion in the second quarter and US$12.5 billion for the first half of 2023, in line with the company’s full-year guidance of US$23 billion to US$25 billion.
It noted that second-quarter shareholder distributions of US$8 billion included US$4.3 billion of share repurchases and US$3.7 billion of dividends.
The corporation also declared a third-quarter dividend of US$0.91 per share, payable on September 11, 2023, to shareholders of Common Stock at the close of business on August 16, 2023.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Darren Woods, was pleased with this quarter’s performance as he noted it to be two times higher than what was earned in the second quarter of 2018, under comparable industry commodity prices.
Woods said, “That doubling of earnings reflects our work in the intervening years to reshape our portfolio of businesses, invest in advantaged projects, and drive a higher level of efficiency and effectiveness in everything we do.”
The CEO said these achievements this quarter also demonstrate the progress the company is making in solving the “and” equation: meeting the world’s needs for energy and essential products and reducing emissions.
Woods said, “We’re pleased with the quarter, the progress it represents, and the improved earnings power of the company. We’re confident that we have the right strategy with the right leadership and the best people to effectively execute it – delivering sustained growth in shareholder value.”
