The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[DewDiligence]

XOM/XTO:

…this may be another possible example (ala PFE-WYE) of the street lacking vision.

That’s an astute comparison, IMO; however, what’s surprising to me is that investors are acting as though XOM’s buying XTO were a “bet the company” maneuver, which it clearly isn’t. Even in the worst-case scenario, i.e. if XTO ends up producing nothing of consequence for XOM, shareholders have merely been diluted by 9%, which is hardly a disaster. This is in stark contrast to the PFE-WYE deal, where PFE really was betting the company.