Investors who bought stocks during the COVID-19 market crash in 2020 have generally made some big gains over the past two years. But there is no question some notable stocks Performed better than others since the pandemic low.
Exxon’s Bumpy Road: A company that’s been a great investment over the past two years: Oil Major ExxonMobil Corp XOM.
Like many other companies, the COVID-19 pandemic devastated Exxon’s business in 2020. In fact, WTI crude oil futures briefly fell below zero during the worst sell-off of the pandemic as demand collapsed and oil buyers ran out of storage space.
At the beginning of 2020, Exxon shares were trading at $70.24. In early March, the stock had fallen to $52.59 as news of the spread of the coronavirus in China raised concerns about a US pandemic.
As the S&P 500 hit its pandemic low on March 23, 2020, Exxon shares fell to their pandemic low of $30.11. Unfortunately, while the S&P 500 recovered from there, the worst was yet to come for the oil market.
On April 20, 2020, WTI crude oil futures contracts fell below zero per barrel for the first time in history and settled at an unprecedented price of negative $37.63. The May WTO treaties expired the next day and prices quickly bounced back into positive territory. The following day, Exxon stock briefly fell below $40 for the last time in the crisis.
In early June 2020, Exxon shares were back above $50 before the recovery rally lost momentum. By the end of October 2020, Exxon shares fell again as low as $31.11.
Exxon rebounded from those October 2020 lows, and the stock quickly became red hot.
Related link: If you had invested $1,000 in Marathon Oil (MRO) stock at its COVID-19 pandemic low, here is what you would have now:
Exxon in 2022, beyond: WTI crude oil prices surged to new post-pandemic highs of over $65/bbl in March 2021 and Exxon shares surpassed $55 in February 2021. Inflation, global energy shortages and the war in Ukraine weighed on crude oil prices…
