In his annual forecast, veteran strategist Jay Woods highlighted ExxonMobil as one of his three preferred equities for 2026, alongside FedEx and Tesla. He argued that the energy giant’s diversified portfolio and strong capital discipline position it well ahead of an anticipated 10% market correction. Woods cited three macro catalysts for the coming year—a likely appointment of a new Federal Reserve chair, the U.S. midterm election turnover, and ongoing global growth concerns—and noted that XOM’s integrated business model should help smooth volatility in both oil and gas markets.

ExxonMobil’s downstream segment has reported sequential margin improvement throughout 2025, reflecting a $7-per-barrel discount for U.S. crude versus global benchmarks and tighter product availability across key markets. Upgrades at the Beaumont, Baytown and Singapore refineries, completed in late 2024, added 150,000 barrels per day of high-conversion capacity. Management forecasts that these enhancements will boost annual refining EBITDA by an incremental $1.2 billion through 2027, supporting a downstream gross margin that recently climbed to 22.1%.

While still best known for its oil assets, ExxonMobil is steadily increasing its exposure to natural gas and liquefied natural gas. The company now operates two major LNG trains in Qatar under long-term contracts and is advancing a third train slated for start-up in 2028. In the Permian Basin and Guyana offshore developments, gas production is projected to rise by 20% by 2027, underpinning annual free cash flow growth of over $4 billion. This pivot towards gas aligns with global power-generation trends and supports ExxonMobil’s 3.3% dividend yield, one of the most attractive among large-cap energy names.