Better Buy: ExxonMobil vs. BP

A price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia. The biggest drop in crude oil prices since the Gulf War in 1991. A lot of bad news hit the energy markets on Monday and paired with coronavirus fears to create a broad market sell-off of more than 7% in the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow Jones Industrial Average. The market's rebound on Tuesday was erased on Wednesday and then was followed by the worst crash in the Dow since 1987, bringing the S&P 500 with it into bear market territory.

Commodity-dependent businesses and companies with global supply chains have seen their stock prices plummet. Oil and gas companies will feel even more pain as they face shrinking and, in the vast majority of cases, negative margins. The more important task is determining which company, ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) or BP (NYSE: BP), is better positioned to endure short-term falls in commodity prices so it can potentially benefit from a rebound.