Brent’s close to $65 a barrel and WTI is climbing closer and closer to $60—and analysts are rushing to make bullish forecasts for the fourth quarter of the year. Big Oil is preparing for an even better three-month period than Q3, when all supermajors beat profit expectations. Two of them stand out: Exxon and Shell. It’s no secret that Shell has ambitions to overtake Exxon as the world’s number-one oil company in terms of value. It’s actually on track to beat Exxon on cash flow from operations for full 2017. The Anglo-Dutch company is also considering a share buyback at some point in the future as financial performance improves and the company gains confidence that it can cover dividend payouts with cash on hand. Meanwhile, Exxon, according to some analysts, is stretching itself thinner and thinner in order to keep its dividend payout ratio at 100 percent, as it […]