You'd better sit down for this, Fools, because I may be about to eat my own words -- and maybe a helping of crow to boot. (Let's hope that seven years have improved the taste).

Seven years ago, I put an article in this space explaining the simple reason I won't buy ExxonMobil stock. Granted, I never actually used the word "never" in the article -- but that was the clear implication. After running the numbers and comparing Exxon's reported net income to the actual free cash flow it was generating from its oil business, I had concluded:

"It costs a lot of money to build the infrastructure needed to take oil out of the ground [but] the cash profit they earn [from these investments simply] isn't nearly as rich as is represented on their income statements."

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Source Fool.com