----------------- Bulletin Message -----------------
From: The Man Common
Date: Apr 27, 2007 10:40 AM

Exxon Mobil Posts Record First Quarter Earnings

(CBS4) As much of South Florida pays nearly $3 for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline, Exxon Mobil has reported record breaking first quarter earnings.

Triple-A reports the price of a gallon of gas has risen 30 cents in the last month. But even with the increase, it is still under the price it was selling for at this time last year. In Miami Dade, a gallon of regular is running on average $2.95. Last year at this time drivers were paying $2.99 on average. In Broward, regular is averaging $2.88 a gallon this year compared to $2.99 a gallon last year.

Thursday, Exxon Mobil, the world's largest publicly traded oil company announced their net income grew 10 percent in the first quarter. The earnings of $9.3 billion were the company's highest ever for the first quarter and beat Wall Street expectations.

But it was not all good news.

While net income amounted to $1.62 per share for the January-March period, compared to $1.37 per share a year ago, analysts were looking for a profit of $1.52 per share. Also, revenue fell to $87.2 billion from $88.9 billion a year earlier, well below the $100 billion analysts had forecast. Like other major oil companies, Exxon Mobil was hurt by lower oil and natural gas prices to start 2007 compared with a year ago.

Last year, the Irving, Texas-based company posted the largest annual profit by a U.S. company - $39.5 billion. That result topped the previous record, also by Exxon Mobil, of $36.13 billion set in 2005.

Last month, Exxon Mobil said it will spend some of that money on more than 20 new global projects in the next three years, investments expected to add 1 million oil-equivalent barrels a day to the company's volumes at peak production.

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