EarningsQ3 2026 Earnings Report
IMO Q3 2026 EPS Results
Actual EPS$3.66
Consensus EPS$3.50
Beat/MissBeat by +$0.16
One Year Ago EPS$1.55
IMO Q3 2026 Revenue Results
Actual Revenue$11.60B
Expected Revenue$12.65B
Beat/MissMissed by -$1.06B
YoY Revenue Growth+39.53%
Earnings Announcement Details
QuarterQ3 2026
Date10/30/2026
TimeBefore Open
Conference CallFriday, October 30, 2026
IMO Upcoming Earnings
Imperial Oil's next earnings date is estimated for January 29, 2027, based on past reporting schedules.
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Audio
IMO Q3 2026 Earnings Call
0:00 / 0:00
Q3 2026 Earnings Slide Deck
No slide deck is available for this earnings event.
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Sentiment|Positive
The call was strongly positive overall. Imperial reported record downstream earnings, substantial cash generation, significant shareholder distributions, strong renewable diesel performance, favorable refining conditions, and multiple long-term upstream growth opportunities. These positives outweighed the production shortfall at Kearl, third-party pipeline outages, the wider expected WCS differential, sequentially lower chemical earnings, and the remaining uncertainty around definitive MOU agreements.Company Guidance
Strong Net Income Growth
Third-quarter net income was $2.454 billion, up $1.915 billion from the third quarter of 2025, primarily driven by higher commodity prices. Excluding $555 million of identified items in the third quarter of 2025, net income increased by $1.36 billion. Sequentially, net income increased $264 million from the second quarter of 2026, primarily due to higher downstream margins and volumes.
Record Downstream Earnings
Downstream earnings were a record $1.555 billion, up $768 million from the second quarter of 2026 due to higher margins and volumes. Management attributed the strong performance to tight refined-product markets and the integrated business model.
Robust Cash Flow and Cash Balance
Cash flows from operating activities were about $3.2 billion in the quarter, or nearly $3 billion excluding working-capital effects, up about $1.4 billion from the third quarter of 2025. Cash on hand increased to about $2.9 billion after capital expenditures, dividends, and accelerated share repurchases.
Significant Shareholder Returns
Imperial paid $420 million of dividends and returned almost $2.1 billion through accelerated share repurchases in the third quarter. The company expects to complete its accelerated NCIB by year end and stated that it is well positioned to return additional surplus cash to shareholders in the New Year. The fourth-quarter dividend was declared at $0.87 per share, and Imperial highlighted 32 consecutive years of annual dividend growth.
Record Renewable Diesel Production
Strathcona achieved Imperial's highest renewable diesel production to date, supplying low-carbon, locally produced fuel to the Canadian market. Renewable diesel contributed to a downstream product-mix factor of $170 million in the third quarter and $400 million year to date, while management said the project was capturing significant ongoing value.
Strong Refinery Throughput and Product Sales
Third-quarter refinery throughput averaged 381 thousand barrels per day at 88% utilization, up 50 thousand barrels per day from the second quarter of 2026, mainly due to the absence of planned turnaround work at Strathcona. Petroleum product sales were 474 thousand barrels per day, up 28 thousand barrels per day sequentially, driven primarily by opportunistic domestic sales and higher exports.
Favorable Downstream Market Conditions
Management described refining margins as extremely high and said market conditions remained very favorable entering the final months of 2026. The company cited high base-case margins, barriers to entry, low-cost Western Canadian crude, strong brands, and logistics advantages, and said margins could persist for longer because refining capacity has recovered more slowly than crude supply.
Downstream Flexibility to Optimize Margins
Imperial said it can adjust feedstocks, increase the use of heavier crude through the coker at Sarnia, and shift production toward maximum distillate signals while still meeting Canadian gasoline demand. Its coast-to-coast logistics network also enables the company to move products to the markets that need them most.
Upstream Production Increased Sequentially
Third-quarter upstream production averaged 418 thousand gross oil-equivalent barrels per day, up 4 thousand barrels per day from the second quarter of 2026. The increase was primarily driven by the absence of the planned Kearl turnaround.
Kearl Production Growth and Milestones
Kearl quarterly production was 282 thousand barrels per day gross, up 25 thousand barrels per day from the second quarter of 2026. Kearl also reached 1 billion barrels of cumulative production in the quarter. The flotation-column secondary-recovery project successfully started up, and Imperial continues to target production of 300 thousand barrels per day at Kearl in 2028.
Kearl Efficiency and Future Development Plans
Management said Kearl has no planned major turnarounds in 2027 or 2028, with the next major turnaround planned for 2029. The company said prior investments in extending turnaround intervals, secondary recovery, mine sequencing, engineered roads, and equipment are supporting its goal of reaching a $18 per barrel unit cost at Kearl.
Cold Lake Projects Exceeding Expectations
Leming SAGD ramped up through the quarter and was producing 10 thousand barrels per day. The Grand Rapids SA-SAGD project continued to exceed expectations, with production above 21 thousand barrels per day. The planned Mohican turnaround was completed ahead of schedule and on budget.
Long-Term Upstream Growth Pipeline
Imperial said its Aspen, Clark Creek, and Corner assets, together with its technology portfolio, provide the potential over time to double gross operated upstream production. Aspen's Enhanced Bitumen Recovery Technology pilot remains on track for startup as stated in the call, and management said Aspen is the next best organic growth opportunity after existing-asset initiatives.
Syncrude Interconnect Supported Premium Production
Syncrude production attributable to Imperial averaged 70 thousand barrels per day. Use of the interconnect pipeline to import bitumen and gas oil supported high upgrader utilization and enabled approximately 10 thousand barrels per day of additional Imperial-share Syncrude sweet premium production.
Chemical Earnings Improved Year Over Year
Chemical earnings were $52 million, down sequentially but up $31 million from the third quarter of 2025 due to higher product pricing.
Capital Investment and Potential Tax Benefits
Third-quarter capital expenditures totaled $668 million, with $514 million spent upstream on sustaining capital at Kearl, Syncrude, and Cold Lake. Management said that, if the productivity mega deduction becomes law as expected, eligible capital expenditures for assets acquired and available for use after September 14 will receive accelerated tax benefits supporting added free cash flow generation.
Progress on Restructuring and Technology Initiatives
Imperial said its restructuring plans are firmly in the implementation phase and progressing well. Management expects long-term efficiency and effectiveness benefits from transforming the business and leveraging advancing technology through ExxonMobil's global capability centers.
Supportive Canadian Investment Environment
Management said fiscal-policy announcements, including the productivity mega deduction, and regulatory reforms intended to improve project-approval timelines are creating conditions for a globally competitive, growing, and lower-emissions Canadian oil sands sector. Imperial said further fiscal certainty and regulatory reform could unlock significant industry investment.
Progress on the Trilateral MOU Framework
Imperial said the federal government, Alberta government, and industry continue working toward converting the nonbinding trilateral MOU into definitive agreements. The framework includes a 6-megaton-per-annum Pathways carbon-capture project, a proposed 1 million barrels-per-day West Coast pipeline, and fiscal and regulatory measures intended to support production growth.
Low-Cost and Resilient Business Model
Management said business cash breakevens are less than $25 per barrel WTI and less than $35 per barrel WTI when including the dividend and sustaining capital. Despite a wider WCS differential, the company said the absolute WCS price remained extremely constructive.
IMO Earnings History
The table shows recent earnings report dates and whether the forecast was beat or missed. See the change in forecast and EPS from the previous year.
Beat
Missed