IRVING, Texas – October 29, 2021 – Exxon Mobil Corporation today announced estimated third-quarter 2021 earnings of $6.8 billion, or $1.57 per share assuming dilution. Third-quarter capital and exploration expenditures were $3.9 billion, bringing year-to-date 2021 investments to $10.8 billion, as the company continued strategic investments in its advantaged assets, including Guyana, Permian Basin, and in Chemical.
- Quarterly earnings increased by $7.4 billion versus 2020 on improved demand and strong operations
- Cash flow from operating activities of $12.1 billion funded capital investments, debt reduction, and dividend
- Anticipate future annual capital investments of $20 billion to $25 billion; 4X increase in low-carbon spend
- Expect to be well within debt-to-capital target range by year end; 4Q dividend increased to $0.88 per share
- Starting 2022, share repurchase program of up to $10 billion over 12 – 24 months
- On track to achieve 2025 emission-reduction plans by year end
- Oil-equivalent production in the third quarter was 3.7 million barrels per day. Excluding entitlement effects, divestments, and government mandates, oil-equivalent production increased 4% versus the prior-year quarter, including growth in the Permian and Guyana.
“All three of our core businesses generated positive earnings during the quarter, with strong operations and cost control, as well as increased realizations and improved demand for fuels,” said Darren Woods, chairman and chief executive officer. “Free cash flow more than covered the dividend and $4 billion of additional debt reduction. With the progress made in restoring the strength of our balance sheet, this week we announced a dividend increase maintaining 39 consecutive years of annual dividend growth.”
“Next month, the board will finalize our corporate plan that supports investment in industry-advantaged, high-return projects, and a growing list of strategic and financially accretive lower-carbon business opportunities,” added Woods. “The strong returns generated by our core businesses provide the near-term cash flows to fund lower-carbon opportunities that leverage our competitive strengths in technology, engineering and project development. We expect to increase the level of spend in lower-emission energy solutions by four times over the prior plan, adding projects with strong returns as well as seeding some development investment in large hub projects that require further policy support. Retaining flexibility to strike a balance across our different investment opportunities, while maintaining a strong balance sheet, is critical to ensure our business produces accretive, long-term returns and remains resilient under a wide range of future scenarios. We anticipate the company’s strong cash flow outlook will enable us to further increase shareholder distributions by up to $10 billion through a share repurchase program over 12-24 months, beginning in 2022.”
