Exxon Mobil Corporation
XOM
is about to hold 2021 virtual annual meeting on May 26. It provided a plan, per which it intends to appoint two new directors, few days prior to the scheduled meeting. While one of the potential directors is expected to have climate related experience, the other one has vast energy industry knowledge. As such, the company advised shareholders to vote for the Blue Proxy card.
This move was criticized by investment firm Engine No. 1, which itself nominated four potential directors and urged voters to vote for the White card. Engine No. 1 is looking for long-term, sustainable and greener solutions for the company’s business.
ExxonMobil’s statement provided several interesting information. One such information is that 2021 consumption of oil and natural gas throughout the world is estimated at 165 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (MMBoe/d), despite COVID-19 impacts on demand. The figure indicates a 15% increase from 2011 levels, signaling per capita energy consumption growth.
The company also highlighted emission-reduction plans, which are expected to be consistent with the Paris Agreement. Earlier, it chalked out a new plan to lower greenhouse gas emissions over the next five years, after the leading integrated energy firm was repeatedly targeted by activist investors over climate change concerns.
The new 2025 targets comprise plans to cut the intensity of emissions from upstream operations by 15-20% from 2016 levels. Over a five-year span, the company will also reduce methane intensity by 40-50% and flaring intensity by 35-45%. The target for elimination of routine flaring in the next decade is another plan that will align with the initiative of World Bank, per the energy giant.
Price Performance
The stock has gained 33.7% in the past year compared with 26.5% rise of the
industry
it belongs to.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Currently, ExxonMobil carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked players in the energy space include
Earthstone Energy, Inc.
ESTE
,
Braskem S.A.
BAK
and
PHX Minerals Inc.
PHX
, each having a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see
the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here
.
Earthstone’s sales for 2021 are expected to jump 87.7% year over year.
Braskem’s bottom line for 2021 is expected to rise 231.3% year over year.
PHX Minerals’ bottom line for 2021 is expected to surge 40% year over year.
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