ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) released first-quarter results on April 26, and the report gave shareholders much to cheer about. For the period ending March 31, the company posted earnings of $8.2 billion, or $2.06 per share.

Exxon earned $11.43 billion, or $2.79 per share, in Q1 of last year. Although the recent numbers equal a 26%-28% decrease, a more noteworthy metric is that Exxon generated a whopping $10.1 billion in free cash flow, beating analysts' expectations by 21%.

By any financial measure, a $10 billion addition to its cash flow coffers is an enviable return on the company's capital expenditure (capex) outlays of $94 billion since 2019. Even though Exxon reduced capital spending by 8.5% from the prior-year period, it still returned $6.8 billion to shareholders in the form of share repurchases and dividends. The company spent $5.8 billion on capital and exploration expenditures in the just-completed quarter.

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Source Fool.com