Crude oil prices have soared this year buoyed by geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East, with no signs of abatement. Year to date, the U.S. benchmark — the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude future price climbed 77.7%, while the international benchmark — the Brent crude future price jumped 84.6%.
In October alone, WTI and Brent crude oil surged 15% and 13%, respectively. WTI is currently hovering around $103 per barrel, and Brent is hovering around $114 per barrel. Crude oil prices are likely to remain elevated due to growing geopolitical conflicts globally.
Consequently, stock prices of crude oil explorers and producers have surged in 2026. Here, we recommend two crude oil exploration behemoths with a top Zacks Rank for investment. These are: Chevron Corp. CVX and ExxonMobil Holdings Corp. XOM.
On Oct. 30, both companies reported solid third-quarter 2026 earnings results and as a result, recorded their all-time high stock prices. Both stocks currently sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The chart below shows the price performance of our two picks year to date.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Chevron Corp.
Chevron reported adjusted earnings per share of $5.28, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.78. The bottom line surged 185.4% from the year-ago adjusted profit of $1.85 per share. Total revenues of $67.8 billion, exceed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $60.5 billion and increased 36.3% year over year.
CVX’s worldwide net oil-equivalent production averaged 3,980 thousand barrels of oil-equivalent per day (MBOE/d), declining 2.6% from 4,086 MBOE/d a year earlier. The upstream segment recorded earnings of $5.7 billion, increasing 72.6% from $3.3 billion in the year-ago quarter.
CVX’s downstream operations recorded earnings of $4.9 billion, compared with $1.1 billion a year earlier. The substantial improvement primarily reflected stronger margins on refined product sales.
In the reported quarter, CVX generated $16 billion in operating cash flow compared with $9.4 billion a year earlier. Free cash flow surged to $12 billion from $4.9 billion a year ago. On Oct. 30, the stock price of CVX touched an all-time high of $236.48.
Strong Estimate Revisions and Attractive Valuations
Chevron has an expected revenue and earnings growth rate of 28.2% and more than 100%, respectively, for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year’s earnings has improved 6.9% over the last 30 days.
Chevron is currently trading at an attractive valuation. The stock has a forward price/earnings (P/E) of 12.98X compared with the S&P 500’s P/E of 18.81X. It has a price/sale (P/S) of 1.99X significantly lower than the S&P 500’s P/S of 3.08X. CVX has a price/book (P/B) of 2.38X compared with the S&P 500’s P/B of 3.66X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
ExxonMobil Holdings Corp.
ExxonMobil came up with adjusted earnings of $4.23 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.9 per share. This compares to earnings of $1.88 per share a year ago. Total revenues of $113.16 billion surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 9.89%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $85.29 billion.
XOM’s upstream earnings improved on higher prices, advantaged volume growth in Guyana, Permian, and Golden Pass LNG, partly offset by Middle East volume impacts and higher non-cash expenses.
XOM is using proprietary technology, centralized operations and enterprise data systems to lower costs and raise asset productivity across the portfolio. In the Permian, XOM drilled more than 80 four-mile wells in the first half of 2026, supported by remote operations and real-time data.
In Guyana, 4D seismic and high-performance computing have unlocked more than $2 billion of net present value, while FPSO reliability exceeded 98% year to date. In third-quarter 2026, cash flow from operating activities was $25.7 billion and free cash flow was $19.1 billion. On Oct. 30, the stock price of XOM touched an all-time high of $236.48.
Strong Estimate Revisions and Attractive Valuations
ExxonMobil has an expected revenue and earnings growth rate of 25.5% and 94.3%, respectively, for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year’s earnings has improved 12.7% over the last 30 days.
ExxonMobil is currently trading at an attractive valuation. The stock has a forward P/E of 13.79X compared with the S&P 500’s P/E of 18.81X. It has a P/S of 1.96X significantly lower than the S&P 500’s P/S of 3.08X. CVX has a P/B of 2.92X compared with the S&P 500’s P/B of 3.66X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
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Chevron Corporation (CVX): Free Stock Analysis Report
ExxonMobil Holdings Corporation (XOM): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).