Oil Majors Soar as Record Profits Fuel Share Buybacks and Dividends

The second quarter earnings season is shaping up to be another bumper year for oil companies. According to FactSet data, 86% of S&P 500 companies have exceeded Wall Street's earnings projections while 80% have beaten revenue expectations.

The Energy sector is reporting the highest earnings growth clip at 128.2%, well above the S&P 500 average at 37.9%. This is largely due to higher oil prices amid the Middle East conflict, with Brent crude averaging $92.55 per barrel in the second quarter, a 45% increase from Q1's average of $63.68/bbl.

Chevron Corp. reported its highest quarterly profits in six years, easily beating Wall Street's expectations with Q2 2026 earnings of $6.06 per share and revenue jumping to $70.06 billion (+56.2% Y/Y). Upstream earnings came in at $8.2 billion, good for a tripling year-over-year.

Exxon Mobil reported mixed results with Q2 Non-GAAP EPS missing expectations due to heavy refinery maintenance limiting fuel margin capture and price volatility, but still saw its highest upstream production in over 20 years.