ExxonMobil sells oil, natural gas, fuels, chemicals and lubricants to energy, transport and industrial customers. In the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, profit more than doubled to $15.4 billion as higher refining margins outweighed lost output. Over the first nine months, stronger cash generation covered investment and shareholder payments while financing debt fell by $9.3 billion.
Analysis period: third quarter and first nine months of 2026. Research cutoff: November 3, 2026, New York date; the principal sources are the November 2 filing and October 30 earnings release.
Source: ExxonMobil’s third-quarter 2026 Form 10-Q, consolidated statements, pp. 3–7, and management discussion, pp. 24–35.
1. Refining supplied most of the profit increase
ExxonMobil earned much more from fuels even though its refineries processed less crude. When fewer refineries can operate, the fuels they produce can become scarce relative to crude oil. The gap between fuel selling prices and input costs can then widen. ExxonMobil’s filing identifies unavailable refining capacity and unusually strong refining margins as central features of this quarter.
That difference matters because rising sales alone would not establish stronger profitability. ExxonMobil also paid more for crude oil and purchased products. Its results improved because the additional income exceeded the additional costs.
| Consolidated results, USD billions except EPS and margins | Third quarter 2025 | Third quarter 2026 | First nine months 2025 | First nine months 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales and other operating revenue | 83.331 | 110.503 | 243.866 | 308.193 |
| Total revenues and other income | 85.294 | 113.164 | 249.930 | 314.319 |
| Income before income taxes | 10.932 | 21.236 | 33.237 | 47.627 |
| Net income attributable to ExxonMobil | 7.548 | 15.413 | 22.343 | 34.121 |
| Net profit margin, calculated | 8.8% | 13.6% | 8.9% | 10.9% |
| Diluted earnings per share, USD | 1.76 | 3.72 | 5.16 | 8.18 |
Calculation notes: Net profit margin divides profit attributable to ExxonMobil by total revenues and other income. The latter includes earnings from partly owned companies and other income. The filing does not present a separate consolidated operating-profit subtotal; income before tax above is the reported measure, including financing effects.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, income statement, p. 3, and Note 2, p. 8.
The Energy Products business, which includes refining and fuel sales, supplied $5.329 billion of the $7.865 billion increase in quarterly profit—about 68%. Management attributes a $7.660 billion year-over-year earnings benefit to stronger refining margins and its decisions about what to process, produce and sell. Lower output, expenses and adverse trading timing effects absorbed part of that benefit.
| ExxonMobil’s share of after-tax earnings, USD billions | Third quarter 2025 | Third quarter 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upstream: oil and gas production | 5.679 | 7.088 | +1.409 |
| Energy Products: refining and fuels | 1.840 | 7.169 | +5.329 |
| Chemical Products | 0.515 | 0.735 | +0.220 |
| Specialty Products | 0.740 | 1.285 | +0.545 |
| Corporate and Financing | -1.226 | -0.864 | +0.362 |
| Consolidated profit attributable to ExxonMobil | 7.548 | 15.413 | +7.865 |
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, Note 3 and segment discussion, pp. 24–33. Segment earnings exclude other shareholders’ interests and reconcile to consolidated profit after Corporate and Financing costs.
The amount of crude processed worldwide fell 9.0%, to 3.735 million barrels a day. Europe accounted for most of the decline, while U.S. processing volumes were nearly unchanged. Yet U.S. Energy Products profit rose to $4.787 billion from $0.858 billion. Management reported that its U.S. Gulf Coast refineries’ main crude-processing units ran at 100% of capacity during the quarter. Those plants were well placed to supply fuels while other parts of the global system faced constraints.
Sources: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, pp. 28–29; October 30, 2026 earnings release, sequential-quarter operating commentary.
Competitor evidence supports an industry explanation. Chevron’s U.S. downstream profit rose to $3.585 billion from $0.638 billion in the same quarter, primarily because of higher refined-product margins. Its refinery inputs increased only 3%. This comparison establishes a shared margin benefit; differences in assets and segment scope prevent treating the two companies’ segment profits as directly comparable measures of efficiency.
Source: Chevron’s third-quarter 2026 results, October 30, “U.S. Downstream.”
ExxonMobil’s own history shows how quickly that benefit can change. In the first nine months of 2024, Energy Products profit fell to $3.631 billion from $8.935 billion a year earlier as new industry capacity weakened refining margins. The current shortage reverses that mechanism. It therefore explains a large part of today’s earnings strength without establishing a permanent level of profitability.
Source: ExxonMobil’s third-quarter 2024 results, November 1, 2024, “Energy Products,” first-nine-month comparison.
2. Growth projects helped, but disruptions still reduced production
Higher oil and gas prices lifted Upstream profit while total production declined. Management estimates that prices added $3.680 billion to quarterly earnings compared with a year earlier. Middle East production disruptions alone reduced earnings by $0.860 billion. Higher depreciation, other operating interruptions and trading effects also weighed on the result.
The output data show where the weakness was concentrated. U.S. liquids and gas production increased, while Asian gas production fell sharply. Management identifies Middle East and Kazakhstan disruptions, together with lower Guyana production entitlements, as reasons worldwide output declined.
| Operating measures | Third quarter 2025 | Third quarter 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Worldwide oil-equivalent production, million barrels a day | 4.769 | 4.496 |
| U.S. liquids production, million barrels a day | 1.512 | 1.627 |
| Asian natural gas production, million cubic feet a day | 3,157 | 1,689 |
| Worldwide refinery throughput, million barrels a day | 4.106 | 3.735 |
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, pp. 24–29. Oil-equivalent production combines liquids and gas using the company’s disclosed energy conversion.
Production entitlement means the share of a project’s output that ExxonMobil can claim under its contracts. At higher oil prices, fewer barrels may be needed to reimburse the company for development costs. Its recorded share of production can consequently fall even when a field continues operating well. The quarterly reconciliation assigns 78,000 barrels a day of the decline to price, spending and other entitlement effects, and 34,000 to divestments. The remaining 161,000-barrel decline combines growth with other operating effects; it is not a separate measure of new-project performance.
Across the first nine months, management credits growth in Guyana, the Permian Basin and liquefied natural gas with a $2.010 billion earnings benefit. Middle East volume disruptions cost $2.140 billion over the same period. The projects were contributing, but their benefit was being absorbed by interruptions elsewhere.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, Upstream earnings drivers and production reconciliation, pp. 25–27.
Chemicals and lubricants tell a similar story about prices and costs. Chemical Products profit increased despite an 11.4% fall in quarterly sales tonnage. Management attributes the improvement chiefly to North America’s advantage in using ethane as a raw material. Specialty Products profit also rose while sales tonnage fell 10.1%, because margins improved on the base oils used to make lubricants. These were stronger earnings from the products sold, rather than evidence of broad volume growth.
Cost reductions helped all four businesses. But they did not make every expense fall. Management’s cash operating-cost measure excluding energy and production taxes rose from $31.8 billion to $33.0 billion in the first nine months. Its reconciliation attributes increases to market conditions and activity, partly offset by $1.8 billion of structural savings. The practical achievement was limiting cost growth while developing the business.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, cost reconciliation, p. 23, and Chemical and Specialty Products discussion, pp. 30–33. Structural savings are management estimates, not a separate cash receipt.
3. Trading timing obscured earnings, but some charges represented lasting costs
The improvement survives management’s adjustments, although the adjusted result still includes unusually favorable market conditions. For the first nine months, reported profit rose 52.7%. Management’s adjusted profit rose 82.4% after removing specified gains, charges and estimated timing effects.
The distinction is easiest to understand through a shipment. A commodity contract can lose value immediately as market prices change, while the related physical sale enters earnings later. Removing that mismatch can help explain a period’s performance. But if a disruption prevents the shipment altogether, the expected offset may never arrive. ExxonMobil specifically reports that some Middle East disruptions prevented physical shipments associated with hedges.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, earnings-driver definitions, p. 21, and Energy Products discussion, p. 29.
| Bridge from reported to adjusted profit, USD billions | First nine months 2025 | First nine months 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Reported profit attributable to ExxonMobil | 22.343 | 34.121 |
| Add back asset impairments | +0.155 | +1.079 |
| Remove identified asset-sale gain | 0.000 | -0.675 |
| Add back restructuring charges | +0.355 | 0.000 |
| Add back other identified charges | 0.000 | +2.491 |
| Remove estimated timing gains / add back estimated timing losses | -0.396 | +3.941 |
| Management’s adjusted profit, non-GAAP | 22.457 | 40.957 |
Reporting basis: All adjustments are after tax and attributable to ExxonMobil. The 2026 other-charge total comprises $1.570 billion of additions to financial reserves and $0.921 billion of Middle East impacts. The table removes the identified asset-sale gain, not every divestment gain. The filing reports approximately $0.8 billion of total after-tax divestment earnings in the first nine months.
Sources: October 30, 2026 earnings release, “Key Figures: Adjusting Items” and segment reconciliation; 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, Note 8, p. 18.
An impairment reduces an asset’s recorded value when the company concludes that its value has fallen sufficiently. A financial-reserve charge recognizes an exposure; it does not mean that cash has been placed in a separate account. Excluding those costs can clarify comparisons, but it does not undo the underlying loss. Nor does the adjusted result remove the exceptionally strong refining margins discussed earlier.
Trading also affects cash needs. Derivatives are contracts whose value changes with commodity prices or other market measures. After permitted offsets and collateral, derivative liabilities rose to $4.048 billion from $0.635 billion at year-end; derivative assets rose to $2.370 billion from $0.854 billion. Additional collateral outside those offsets increased to about $1.0 billion from $0.5 billion. Thus volatile prices can require more cash or collateral even while the physical business earns more.
The filing separately reports $5.6 billion of pretax realized and unrealized losses on commodity contracts held for trading in the first nine months, versus a $0.503 billion gain a year earlier. Those amounts are already included in revenue and earnings. They have a different tax and transaction scope from the adjustment table and must not be added to it.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, Note 6, pp. 16–17.
The countries in which ExxonMobil earned its profit also mattered. Management’s effective tax rate fell to 26% from 32% for the quarter, mainly because profits shifted among countries with different rates. This is a six-percentage-point decline. It helped reported profit, but depends on where future earnings arise. This company measure includes ExxonMobil’s share of taxes at partly owned companies and therefore differs from simply dividing the consolidated income-tax line by reported pretax income.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, “Taxes,” p. 35.
4. Cash generation covered investment and shareholder payments
ExxonMobil stopped drawing down cash to support the same broad pattern of spending. In the first nine months of 2025, operating cash did not cover property investment, dividends and share purchases. In the corresponding 2026 period, it covered those uses with $9.728 billion left over.
| Cash allocation, USD billions | First nine months 2025 | First nine months 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash generated by operations | 39.291 | 57.910 |
| Cash spent on property, plant and equipment | 20.908 | 20.175 |
| Cash remaining after that spending, calculated | 18.383 | 37.735 |
| Dividends paid to ExxonMobil shareholders | 12.865 | 12.897 |
| Cash paid to acquire ExxonMobil shares | 14.894 | 15.110 |
| Remainder after these uses, calculated | -9.376 | 9.728 |
Calculation notes: Spending and payments are shown as positive uses of cash. The remainder subtracts dividends and share purchases from cash remaining after property investment. It precedes other investing, borrowing and financing transactions.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, cash-flow statement, p. 6.
Higher profit was the largest reason operating cash increased. Charges for equipment wearing out, reserves being extracted and assets losing value also rose. These depreciation, depletion and impairment expenses reduce profit without requiring an equivalent current-period cash payment. Finally, the net cash absorbed by customer collections, inventories and operating payments was smaller than a year earlier.
| Reconciliation of operating cash, USD billions | First nine months 2025 | First nine months 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Net income including other shareholders’ interests | 23.155 | 35.375 |
| Add back depreciation, depletion and impairments | 18.278 | 22.263 |
| Cash absorbed by operating working capital | -5.000 | -1.641 |
| Other adjustments, net | 2.858 | 1.913 |
| Operating cash flow | 39.291 | 57.910 |
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, p. 6. Working capital here means operating balances such as receivables, inventories and payables, excluding cash and financing debt.
The balance sheet shows why collections and payments still matter. Amounts due from customers and other counterparties increased sharply. At the same time, ExxonMobil owed more to suppliers and had more income taxes awaiting payment. Those unpaid obligations helped offset the cash tied up in receivables. The filing does not provide enough detail to attribute the entire receivables increase to prices, payment speed or trading contracts.
| Selected consolidated balances, USD billions | December 31, 2025 | September 30, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and cash equivalents | 10.681 | 12.153 |
| Notes and accounts receivable, net | 44.562 | 66.533 |
| Inventories, including materials and supplies | 26.302 | 24.802 |
| Other current assets | 1.837 | 4.137 |
| Accounts payable and accrued liabilities | 60.911 | 78.642 |
| Income taxes payable | 2.123 | 7.044 |
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, balance sheet, p. 5, and Note 3, p. 13. Receivables include balances from physical commodity contracts accounted for as derivatives.
Inventory values fell by $1.500 billion. ExxonMobil generally records the most recently acquired crude and products as sold first, leaving older costs in inventory. Dollar changes therefore need not match physical stock changes.
Source: 2025 Form 10-K, Note 1, inventory accounting policy.
After all investing activities, the company generated $39.044 billion of free cash flow under its own definition, versus $20.565 billion a year earlier. That definition includes asset-sale proceeds and other investing movements; the simpler property-spending remainder above isolates a different question. Asset-sale and investment-return proceeds were lower in 2026, so greater reliance on disposals did not create the cash improvement.
Net cash debt repayment was $8.326 billion. After other financing uses and currency movements, cash increased by $1.472 billion. The result gives ExxonMobil more ability to continue projects through an operating interruption or a weaker margin period.
Sources: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, pp. 6 and 34; October 30 earnings release, free-cash-flow definition. Full calculations appear below.
5. Lower borrowing left more room for long-term commitments
The company reduced financing debt even as operating liabilities increased. Total borrowings fell to $34.250 billion from $43.537 billion. Subtracting cash leaves net debt of $22.097 billion, down from $32.856 billion. Borrowings classified as current fell to $4.523 billion from $9.296 billion. ExxonMobil also had $7.7 billion of undrawn committed credit lines at September 30, mostly short term.
Total liabilities nevertheless rose to $198.397 billion from $182.354 billion, chiefly reflecting the larger payable and tax balances described above. These are different obligations: borrowing finances the business over time, while supplier and tax balances arise as it operates. Paying down loans improves flexibility, but does not remove the need to settle operating bills.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, balance sheet, p. 5, Note 6, p. 17, and liquidity discussion, p. 34.
At year-end 2025, scheduled debt maturities excluding finance leases were $2.5 billion in 2027, $1.7 billion in each of 2028 and 2029, and $5.3 billion in 2030. That schedule predates 2026 repayments. September’s tender results reported that bondholders submitted $1.186 billion of Pioneer notes due in 2030 and 2031 for repurchase, with settlement expected September 16. The offers show management’s plan to reduce future obligations ahead of maturity.
Sources: 2025 Form 10-K, Note 12, pp. 99–100; September 15, 2026 tender results, principal amounts and settlement terms. The dated maturity schedule is not presented as the remaining September 2026 schedule.
Financing costs require looking beyond the income statement. Interest expense for the first nine months was $0.705 billion, but cash interest paid was $1.403 billion. Of that cash, $0.818 billion was added to the cost of construction and other assets rather than charged immediately to earnings. The listed euro notes pay fixed annual interest of 0.524%, 0.835% and 1.408% and mature in 2028, 2032 and 2039, respectively. These are the terms of particular securities, not the cost of all borrowing.
The reviewed filings do not report a breach of borrowing conditions or quantify how close ExxonMobil is to contractual financial limits. Available cash, committed credit and cash generation support the liquidity assessment.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, cover, pp. 3 and 6, and liquidity discussion; 2025 Form 10-K, Notes 10–13.
Leases and purchase commitments also consume future cash. At December 2025, future payments under operating and finance leases, before discounting them to today’s value, totaled $12.846 billion, including $2.551 billion scheduled for 2026. Leases not yet started added $3.8 billion of commitments. Noncancelable goods-and-services commitments totaled $54.1 billion, with $6.3 billion scheduled for 2026. These are dated commitments, not amounts still unpaid at September.
Source: 2025 Form 10-K, contractual obligations, p. 59, and Note 13, pp. 101–102. Lease liabilities already recognized must not be added again to total liabilities.
The asset base changed much less than receivables. Net property, plant and equipment fell to $296.955 billion from $299.373 billion while the company continued investing and recorded depreciation, depletion, impairments and divestments.
Other assets, including intangibles, rose to $22.044 billion from $20.908 billion. That mixed category includes operating-lease assets. New operating leases added $2.540 billion of noncash rights to use assets and matching obligations during the first nine months. Cash property spending alone cannot fully reconcile these asset movements.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, pp. 5–6 and Note 8; 2025 Form 10-K, Note 13, asset classification.
The biggest apparent equity movement was an accounting reorganization. On July 1, the Texas holding company replaced the New Jersey parent. Outstanding shares were exchanged one for one; 3.907 billion already-repurchased treasury shares were cancelled. This removed their historical cost from treasury stock and reduced retained earnings and paid-in capital by matching amounts. Total equity was unchanged by the transaction.
Actual share purchases did reduce shares outstanding during 2026. Quarterly average shares fell 3.4%, helping earnings per share rise faster than total profit. Holding profit fixed and using the prior-year share count gives approximately $3.60 per share instead of $3.72—a calculated effect of about $0.13 before rounding. Nine-month stock-award amortization recognized in equity was $0.780 billion, compared with $0.601 billion a year earlier. This expense measure is separate from the share-count table, which records a net decline in outstanding shares from repurchases.
Sources: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, equity statement and share activity, p. 7, and Notes 1–2, p. 8. The complete equity reconciliation below separates cash payments, share cancellation and noncash changes.
6. The next projects broaden production, while near-term profit still depends on fuel supply
ExxonMobil has more funding room for expansion, but project execution and fuel margins will determine how much of the earnings improvement lasts. Management’s stated allocation priorities are competitive projects, a strong balance sheet, a growing dividend and share repurchases when market conditions permit.
Its cash capital spending measure was $19.976 billion for the first nine months, compared with $21.134 billion a year earlier. Upstream still accounted for most spending, at $16.645 billion. Energy Products spending increased to $2.006 billion from $1.252 billion. The full-year plan remains $27–29 billion, implying roughly $7.0–9.0 billion in the fourth quarter if the plan is achieved. This measure includes investments and net advances beyond property purchases; its calculation is shown in the notes.
Management also expects $20 billion of share repurchases in 2027, assuming reasonable market conditions. That remains a substantial planned use of cash alongside project spending.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, cash-capital-spending reconciliation, p. 22, capital allocation, p. 34, and repurchase plans, p. 36. The fourth-quarter range is calculated, not separate management guidance.
Guyana provides a visible route to additional output. In its September 28 update, ExxonMobil targeted Uaru startup by the end of 2026, followed by Whiptail in 2027 and Hammerhead in 2029. Those developments add production capacity over several years. Their contribution to ExxonMobil’s reported barrels and cash will also depend on ramp-up performance and the production-sharing terms explained earlier; project-wide capacity is not the company’s net entitlement.
Source: ExxonMobil’s Guyana development update, September 28, 2026, project timetable.
The company is also increasing its role in liquefied natural gas, which allows gas to be shipped to overseas customers. It announced agreements to increase its interests in Papua LNG and Rovuma LNG to 34% and 50%, respectively. Papua New Guinea’s government confirmed on October 16 that ExxonMobil had assumed Papua LNG operatorship. The government still described the final investment decision as a future step later in 2026. This expands the development pipeline and management responsibility before it supplies additional operating cash.
Sources: October 30, 2026 earnings release, project highlights; Papua New Guinea government statement, October 16, 2026, operatorship and investment-decision status.
Carbon storage is becoming an operating service for industrial customers. ExxonMobil began operations serving Nucor’s Louisiana iron facility, with capacity to capture, transport and store up to 800,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually. The Rose storage project also received regulatory approval. The business opportunity is to use a shared transport and storage system for several industrial facilities. Earnings still depend on actual volumes, contract terms, costs and policy support; these announcements disclose no project profit amount.
Source: ExxonMobil’s Nucor and Rose update, September 16, 2026, customer startup, capacity and permitting; 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, pp. 19–20, conditions for lower-emission investment.
The nearer-term uncertainty remains the fuel market. The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s October 6 outlook expected refining spreads to ease as crude prices and inventories adjusted, while remaining above historical averages. The International Energy Agency’s October 14 assessment also warned that higher freight and delivered-crude costs were squeezing refiners outside North America. It forecast global oil demand to decline in 2026. Scarce supply can support margins while high prices simultaneously weaken customer demand.
Those conditions can pull ExxonMobil in opposite directions. Restored Middle East operations could recover lost production and shipments, but additional industry supply could reduce the margin earned on fuels. Continued disruption could sustain some fuel margins while prolonging lost output and increasing trading cash requirements. The decisive business question is whether new projects and operating improvements can preserve cash generation as the shortage changes.
Sources: EIA, October 6, 2026 Short-Term Energy Outlook, “U.S. Petroleum products”; IEA, October 14, 2026 Oil Market Report, highlights and “Fragile rebound.” Agency forecasts are forecasts, not company guidance or subsequent actual outcomes.
Legal and contractual exposures remain relevant alongside project risk. The quarterly filing reports $7.107 billion of non-debt guarantees covering affiliate and other third-party obligations; that is potential exposure, not an expected cash loss. It also describes climate lawsuits. Management considers a material adverse outcome remote, but provides no quantified loss range. That assessment should not be read as the absence of legal exposure.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, Note 7, p. 18.
The last full tax footnote reported $4.131 billion of unrecognized tax benefits at December 2025. Favorable resolution would generally reduce tax expense; this is not a forecast of additional tax payments.
Source: 2025 Form 10-K, Note 15, p. 107.
7. Stronger funding gives ExxonMobil room to develop the business
ExxonMobil converted an unusually favorable refining market into a stronger funding position. Its U.S. operations and new projects helped it capture that opportunity, while cash generation allowed borrowing to fall alongside continued investment and shareholder payments.
The evidence supports continued development capacity more strongly than it supports repeating this quarter’s profit. Total oil and gas output declined, several product volumes fell, and some financial charges represented real costs. The business assessment would strengthen if new projects increase saleable production and cash generation remains sufficient after fuel margins ease. Persistent disruptions, project delays or a faster margin decline would reduce that funding cushion.
Sources: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, pp. 24–35; project and industry sources cited in Section 6.
Reporting basis:
- The registrant is ExxonMobil Holdings Corporation, CIK 0002115436, ticker XOM. The selected Form 10-Q was filed November 2, 2026, under accession 0002115436-26-000020, for the quarter ended September 30, 2026.
- The analysis uses unaudited consolidated U.S. GAAP accounts. The July 1 parent-company reorganization did not change the group’s businesses, assets, liabilities or reporting basis. Prior periods are therefore the continuing consolidated ExxonMobil group, not a newly formed parent on a standalone basis.
- Quarter comparisons cover July–September; cumulative comparisons cover January–September. Balance-sheet comparisons use September 30, 2026, and December 31, 2025. Unless otherwise stated, profit means net income attributable to ExxonMobil; operating cash begins with income including other shareholders’ interests.
- The supplied complete filing text was the foundation. Selected SEC machine-readable financial facts were checked against the statements using the selected accession, U.S. GAAP taxonomy, USD units and exact dates. In particular, the revenue fact includes affiliate and other income; it is not interchangeable with sales and other operating revenue.
- The research cutoff is November 3, 2026, New York date. Company operating updates used here run through October 30, financial filing evidence through November 2, and the cited industry outlooks are dated October 6 and 14. This describes the evidence reviewed, not a claim that every subsequent development was independently verified.
Sources: SEC submission record; SEC financial facts; 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, cover and Note 1.
Calculation notes:
Growth and margins. Percentage growth is the current amount divided by the same prior-year period, minus one. Quarterly sales growth is 110.503 ÷ 83.331 − 1 = 32.6%; profit growth is 15.413 ÷ 7.548 − 1 = 104.2%. First-nine-month profit growth is 34.121 ÷ 22.343 − 1 = 52.7%. Quarterly net margins are 15.413 ÷ 113.164 = 13.6% and 7.548 ÷ 85.294 = 8.8%. All inputs in these calculations are USD billions. Energy Products contributed 5.329 ÷ 7.865 = 67.8% of quarterly profit growth. Management’s individual earnings-driver estimates are rounded and are not treated as an exact accounting bridge.
Operating cash improvement. In USD billions, the $18.619 increase comprises $12.220 more consolidated net income, $3.985 more depreciation/depletion/impairment add-backs, $3.359 less cash absorbed by working capital, and $0.945 fewer other net adjustments. Balance-sheet changes cannot replace the cash-flow working-capital figure because noncash changes and other accounting movements also affect those balances.
Cash and free cash flow. In USD billions, opening cash of 10.681 + operating inflow of 57.910 − net investing outflow of 18.866 − financing outflow of 37.351 − currency effects of 0.221 = closing cash of 12.153. The cash-flow statement includes restricted cash; its opening and closing totals equal the balance-sheet cash amounts for these dates. Company-defined free cash flow adds operating cash, net investing cash excluding acquired cash, and major-project contributions from other shareholders: 2026 = 57.910 − 18.866 + 0 = 39.044; 2025 = 39.291 − 18.794 + 0.068 = 20.565. It includes asset-sale and investment-return proceeds of 1.457 and 2.138, respectively.
Investment and debt cash flows. Management’s cash capital spending measure includes more than property purchases. This table shows the signed amounts added or subtracted to reach it, in USD billions.
| Cash capital spending calculation | First nine months 2025 | First nine months 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Property, plant and equipment purchases | 20.908 | 20.175 |
| Additional investments and advances | +0.973 | +1.579 |
| Other investing activities, including collections | -0.949 | -1.431 |
| Contributions from other shareholders for major projects | -0.068 | 0.000 |
| Adjustment to exclude noncapital advances and collections | +0.270 | -0.347 |
| Management’s cash capital spending, non-GAAP | 21.134 | 19.976 |
The final adjustment removes cash movements unrelated to capital expenditure or equity investment. Its sign depends on whether the excluded movements used or provided cash. This measure supplies no maintenance-versus-growth spending split.
Net cash debt repayment in 2026, in USD billions, is long-term repayments of 1.893 + short-term repayments of 6.537 + reductions in very-short-term debt of 0.974 − new long-term borrowing of 1.078 = 8.326. Debt’s carrying value fell by 9.287. The remaining 0.961 difference is not classified as additional cash repayment because the filing provides no complete noncash debt bridge.
Sources: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, pp. 3, 5–6, 22 and 24–34; October 30 release, free-cash-flow definition.
- Equity and the treasury-share cancellation. Equity is the recorded value left for owners after liabilities are subtracted from assets. Retained earnings track accumulated profits kept after dividends and accounting adjustments. The table follows each account from December 31, 2025, to September 30, 2026. Treasury stock is negative because repurchased shares reduce equity. “Other comprehensive income” records specified currency and benefit-plan changes outside net profit. Amounts are USD billions.
| Equity account | Opening balance | Other nine-month changes | Effect of July cancellation | Closing balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Common stock and additional paid-in capital | 46.150 | +0.726 | -1.846 | 45.030 |
| Retained earnings | 482.494 | +21.225 | -266.430 | 237.289 |
| Accumulated other comprehensive income | -10.863 | -0.567 | 0.000 | -11.430 |
| Treasury stock, at cost | -258.395 | -14.981 | +268.276 | -5.100 |
| ExxonMobil shareholders’ equity | 259.386 | +6.403 | 0.000 | 265.789 |
Paid-in capital changes comprise 0.780 of stock-award amortization less 0.054 of other changes.
Retained earnings add profit of 34.121, subtract dividends of 12.897 and include 0.001 of other changes. Treasury-stock changes comprise 15.014 of repurchases less 0.033 of dispositions.
Currency translation reduced accumulated other comprehensive income by 0.377, and postretirement-benefit adjustments reduced it by 0.190.
Other shareholders’ equity fell from 7.240 to 6.731: add income of 1.254, subtract declared dividends of 0.503, other comprehensive losses of 0.160, repurchases of 0.464 and other changes of 0.636. Total equity therefore increased from 266.626 to 272.520. The consolidated balance checks are 198.397 of liabilities + 272.520 of equity = 470.917 of assets at September 2026, and 182.354 + 266.626 = 448.980 at December 2025.
Cash share purchases of 15.110 differ from the equity repurchase entry of 15.014; each is used only for its own statement. Rounded shares outstanding fell from 4.179 billion to 4.079 billion. Cancelling treasury shares did not reduce outstanding shares again. The EPS illustration uses 15,413 million of profit divided by 4,285 million prior-year average shares, compared with 4,140 million current-year average shares. These average counts include unvested restricted shares.
Source: 2026 third-quarter 10-Q, pp. 5–8 and Note 5, p. 15. Small presentation differences may arise from rounding.
This report provides business and financial information for general educational purposes. It is not investment advice.