Imagine Owning Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) And Wondering If The 24% Share Price Slide Is

Justified
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Ideally, your overall portfolio should beat the market average. But the main game
is to find enough winners to more than offset the losers So we wouldn't blame long
term Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) shareholders for doubting their decision to
hold, with the stock down 24% over a half decade. There was little comfort for
shareholders in the last week as the price declined a further 1.2%.

Check out our latest analysis for Exxon Mobil

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine,
but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One way to examine how market
sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's
share price and its earnings per share (EPS).

During the five years over which the share price declined, Exxon Mobil's earnings
per share (EPS) dropped by 10.0% each year. The share price decline of 5.3% per
year isn't as bad as the EPS decline. The relatively muted share price reaction
might be because the market expects the business to turn around.

The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you
can see greater detail).

NYSE:XOM Past and Future Earnings, May 13th 2019

More
Dive deeper into Exxon Mobil's key metrics by checking this interactive graph of
Exxon Mobil's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference
between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. Whereas the share
price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the
value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any
discounted capital raising or spin-off. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more
complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. As it happens, Exxon Mobil's TSR
for the last 5 years was -8.7%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned
earlier. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely
explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective
While the broader market gained around 6.3% in the last year, Exxon Mobil
shareholders lost 1.7% (even including dividends). However, keep in mind that even
the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period.
Unfortunately, longer term shareholders are suffering worse, given the loss of 1.8%
doled out over the last five years. We would want clear information suggesting the
company will grow, before taking the view that the share price will stabilize. Most
investors take the time to check the data on insider transactions. You can click
here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

Of course Exxon Mobil may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this
free collection of growth stocks.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted
average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data.
Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company
announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at
editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in
nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does
not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St
has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.

Exxon Mobil investing $100M in national labs for emissions reductions

Exxon Mobil�s petrochemical complex in Baytown

Exxon Mobil�s petrochemical complex in Baytown

Photo: ExxonMobil Chemical Co.

Photo: ExxonMobil Chemical Co.

Exxon Mobil�s petrochemical complex in Baytown

Exxon Mobil�s petrochemical complex in Baytown

Photo: ExxonMobil Chemical Co.

Exxon Mobil investing $100M in national labs for emissions reductions

Exxon Mobil said Wednesday it will invest about $100 million over 10 years in
emissions-reduction technologies at some of the nation's top energy research labs.

Exxon Mobil said the funds will go the U.S. Energy Department's National Renewable
Energy Laboratory and National Energy Technology Laboratory for research into
biofuels and carbon capture and storage projects in the power generation,
transportation and industrial sectors.

"We're focusing on advancing fundamental science to develop breakthrough solutions

that can make a difference on a global basis in emissions reduction," said Exxon
Chief Executive Darren Woods. "We're doing that with our in-house scientists and
with corporate partners, through relationships with 80 universities and, now, with
the intellectual and computing capacity of the renowned national labs."

RELATED: Big Oil aims to kick its dirty methane habit

The funds will be focused on energy efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction
projects to help combat the effects of ongoing climate change, including reducing
emissions from Exxon Mobil fuels and petrochemicals production.

"Finding meaningful solutions to address climate change is going to take everyone �

governments, companies and academia � working together," said Vijay Swarup, vice
president of research and development at Exxon Mobil research and engineering.