Exxon Mobil (XOM) announced a first quarter profit growth of 17 percent in spite of the fact the company said it was not aided by higher gas prices. The world’s second largest publicly traded oil company earned $10.9 billion during its first quarter. This is the second largest quarterly profit ever reported by a US company, which obviously attracts attention from the stock trading markets. The all-time high was Exxon’s $11.7 billion earnings from the fourth quarter of 2007.
Exxon and other major oil companies have been targeted by government officials and consumer watch groups who say it is not fair for oil companies to experience record profits while consumers are seeing record prices at the pump. Exxon said it has not really benefited from high consumer prices because the company itself relies on purchasing highly priced crude oil from other markets.
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The first quarter profit was equal to $2.03 per share. During last year’s first quarter, the company earned $9.3 billion, or $1.62 per share. In spite of the strong growth and near record profit, some investors were as inspired to add Exxon to their trading portfolio because earnings missed analyst calls for $2.13 per share. Revenue for the company climbed from $87.2 billion to $116.8 billion. Forecasts were for $124 billion in revenue, however, which might generate some covered call investing or covered call strategies for the near-term.
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Investors executing long-term stock trading strategies are still likely to enjoy the potential for more gains in oil. As the company’s share priced dropped nearly 5 percent following the miss of analyst estimates, some may look to add more Exxon to the personal stock portfolio to take advantage of the dip.
Another bit of exciting news for investors looking at Exxon for a long-term stock trading strategy is its $103.73 one year price target. The company currently sits just below $90 per share. Dividend investors are also likely to appreciate the $1.60 annual dividend yield paid by the company.
Some investors may be using Exxon and other big oil companies to hedge investments and protect against rising energy prices. Although retail gas prices are on the rise, traders can benefit from the earnings being posted by much of the oil-based stock companies. Oil stocks definitely seem to make sense for virtually any trading portfolio at the moment.
Exxon was not the only oil company to report a strong quarter. Chevron and Marathon both reported strong earnings this week as well. Investors should perform effective stock market research to decide which oil stock, if any, is the right fit for their stock market investment strategies. Some oil companies boast strong earnings, others offer high dividend payouts, and others have other solid business factors that make them sound buys. Price points and financial indicators also vary from one company to the next.
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[tags] US, XOM, Exxon Mobil Corp., covered call investing, covered call strategies, hedge investments, investing in stock options, personal stock portfolio, poweroptions, stock investing, stock market help, stock market investment strategies, stock market research, stock options, stock trading [/tags]