Exxon Mobil breezed by its own record for the biggest quarterly profit for a US corporation, earning $14.83 billion in the third quarter. Bolstered by this summer's record crude prices, net income jumped nearly 58%, or $2.86 a share, for the world's largest publicly traded oil company. Exxon set the previous record for US corporate profit in the quarter prior, when it earned $11.68 billion.
But Exxon's run of record earnings may be over, Bloomberg notes, as crude prices have fallen more than $80 a barrel since July, when it topped out at $147, and demand for fuel has declined. Exxon stock has dropped 19% this year. (More Exxon Mobil stories.)