ExxonMobil Stock Outlook: Is Wall Street Bullish or Bearish?

With a market cap of $776.1 billion, ExxonMobil Holdings Corporation (XOM) is one of the world's largest publicly traded energy companies and chemical manufacturers, serving global energy and chemical product markets. The company develops and applies advanced technologies to meet growing energy needs safely and responsibly.

Shares of the Spring, Texas-based company have outperformed the broader market over the past 52 weeks. XOM stock has increased 63.3% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied 11.1%. Moreover, shares of the company are up 55.6% on a YTD basis, compared to SPX's 10.7% gain.

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Looking closer, shares of the oil and natural gas company have also outpaced the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF's (XLE) 60.1% return over the past 52 weeks.

ExxonMobil shares rose 2.2% on Oct. 30 after the company reported better-than-expected Q3 2026 adjusted EPS of $4.23 and adjusted total earnings of $17.5 billion. The biggest driver was a 120% quarter-over-quarter surge in downstream earnings to $9 billion, as refining margins soared amid fuel supply disruptions caused by the US-Israeli war on Iran and Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries, while upstream earnings fell 20% to $7.3 billion due to lower Brent crude prices.

Investor confidence was further supported by Exxon's $20 billion 2027 share repurchase plan, alongside $5.1 billion in Q3 buybacks, $4.3 billion in dividends and record-high diesel production at its US Gulf Coast refineries.

For the fiscal year which ended in December 2026, analysts expect ExxonMobil's adjusted EPS to surge 94.3% year-over-year to $13.58. The company's earnings surprise history is mixed. It beat the consensus estimates in three of the last four quarters while missing on another occasion.

Among the 26 analysts covering the stock, the consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy." That's based on 10 "Strong Buy" ratings, one "Moderate Buy," and 15 "Holds."

This configuration is slightly less bullish than three months ago, with 11 analysts suggesting a "Strong Buy."

On Oct. 15, Morgan Stanley raised its price target on ExxonMobil to $185, maintaining an "Overweight" rating.