ExxonMobil 2012
An ExxonMobil refinery. Reuters

ExxonMobil Corp (NYSE:XOM) on Thursday said it earned $7.87 billion, or $1.79 a share, in the third quarter as profit and revenue fell due to sharply lower refining margins.

The company earned $9.57 billion, or $2.09 a share, in 2012's third quarter.

Third quarter revenue fell to $112.4 billion from $115.4 billion a year ago.

Analysts had expected the company to earn $1.77 a share on $107.39 billion in revenue in the latest quarter.

Exxon's so-called "downstream operations," which include refining and retail, produced profits of "$592 million, down $2.59 billion from the third quarter of 2012. Weaker margins, mainly in refining, decreased earnings by $2.4 billion,"the firm said in a press release.