What a Record

Exxon Mobil set a quarterly profit record for a U.S. company, surging past analyst estimates. Exxon said its third-quarter net profit was $14.83 billion, or $2.86 per share, up from $9.41 billion, or $1.70, a year earlier. That profit included $1.45 billion in special items.

The company said its revenue totaled $137.7 billion in the third quarter.

Analysts had expected Exxon to report a 40% jump in earnings to $2.38 per share, or net income of $12.2 billion, and a 28% surge in revenues to $131.13 billion.

The company's earnings were buoyed by oil prices, which reached record highs in the quarter before declining. Oil prices were trading at $140.97 a barrel at the beginning of the third quarter, and had fallen to $100.64 at the end.

After touching a record above $147 a barrel in July, crude prices tumbled nearly $60 as demand for fuel grew. Exxon Mobil has dropped 27 percent this year in New York stock trading,.