Exxon Mobil and Chevron earnings fall as Iran war disrupts oil shipments

Surging oil prices due to the Iran war did not result in a windfall for Exxon Mobil and Chevron in the first quarter.

The two biggest U.S. oil companies reported profits on Friday that fell dramatically compared to the same period last year. Exxon's net income declined 45% while Chevron's tumbled 36%.

Exxon shares were up more than 1% in premarket trading while Chevron's gained about 2%, as they both beat Wall Street's earnings estimates.

Oil prices had been depressed during the first two months of the year as the market anticipated a surplus, but suddenly spiked after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28. Prices have surged 57% as the war has caused the largest oil supply disruption in history.

Here's how Exxon and Chevron did compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

• Exxon posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.16
• Exxon posted revenue of $85.14 billion vs $82.18 billion expected
• Chevron posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.41, beating estimates of 95 cents
• Chevron reported revenue of $48.61 billion, missing estimates of $52.1 billion

Exxon warned earlier in the month the Iran war would weigh on its results. It has open financial hedges that proved unfavorable in the quarter as the war triggered a sudden and massive supply disruption.

Exxon lost nearly $4 billion on these trades due to what it described as a "timing effect." The value of the product shipments that it hedged were not counted in the quarter because their delivery was not complete.

It also took a $700 million hit on closed hedges that were not offest by physical deliveries due to the Middle East disruption.

The impact, however, is temporary and the hedges will ultimately result in a net profit in subsequent quarters after the products are delivered, Exxon said.

As a result, Exxon posted net income of $4.2 billion, or $1.00 per share, down from $7.7 billion or $1.76 per share last year. Excluding the negative timing effects and the other items, it earned $8.8 billion, or $2.09 per share. Removing the $700 million hit, Exxon earned $1.16 per share.

Chevron posted a profit of $2.2 billion, or $1.11 per share, in the quarter down from $3.5 billion, or $2 per share, one year ago. It booked a $2.9 billion charge related to its financial hedges.

After adjustments, Chevron earned $1.41 per share to beat Wall Street's estimates of 95 cents. It was the company's biggest earnings beat since October 2020.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.