Earnings Roundup

Exxon Mobil Corp., the largest US oil company, reported its lowest profit in more than five years, and fell short of analyst estimates after the recession sapped demand for diesel, gasoline, and natural gas.

Second-quarter net income dropped 66 percent to $3.95 billion, or 81 cents a share, from $11.7 billion, or $2.22, a year earlier, Irving, Texas-based Exxon Mobil said. Per-share profit excluding legal costs related to the 1989 Valdez oil spill was 15 cents below the average of 16 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

The quarter also included an exploration failure in Brazil, tax increases in Canada, and a narrowing of refining margins that may signal lower profitability on $1 billion in expansion work at Exxon Mobil plants in the United States and Europe. Oil futures in New York averaged less than $60 a barrel, down 52 percent from a year earlier, the biggest second-quarter drop on record.

Revenue slid 46 percent to $74.5 billion, Exxon Mobil said. Oil and natural-gas production fell 3.3 percent, and the company’s US refining business had a loss of $15 million.

Evergreen Solar Inc., a maker of solar power wafers, reported a wider second-quarter loss on costs to expand production and lower prices for its products.

The net loss was $20.3 million, or 11 cents a share, compared with a loss of $8.92 million, or 8 cents, a year earlier, Marlborough-based Evergreen said. The loss was expected to be 8 cents, the average of 12 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Sales almost tripled to $63.8 million.

Evergreen makes thin “string ribbon’’ photovoltaic wafers that use less polysilicon than traditional solar panels. Chief executive Richard Feldt is seeking to profit from expanding its production in Massachusetts and through royalties from a joint venture.

Evergreen in April agreed to build a 100-megawatt wafer factory with partners in China at a cost of $40 million to $50 million. The factory will be able to produce solar panels at a cost of about $1.40 to $1.50 per watt, according to Feldt.

Iron Mountain Inc., which provides records management services, said its second-quarter income more than doubled, as sharply reduced costs offset lower revenue.

The Boston company said earnings rose to $87.6 million, or 43 cents per share, from $35.9 million, or 18 cents per share, in the same quarter last year.

Excluding an 18-cent-per-share gain from foreign currency adjustments, the company earned 25 cents per share. By that measure, results beat Wall Street analysts, who expected 23 cents per share.

Revenue fell 3 percent to $746 million. Analysts expected $741.2 million in revenue.

Iron Mountain enjoyed lower interest and operating expenses during the period, while its income tax provision was halved - all of which contributed to the rise in earnings.

The company also projected a third-quarter revenue guidance within Wall Street expectations.

American Superconductor Corp., a maker of wind energy components and transmission lines, surged the most in a year after reporting its second quarterly profit after 18 years as a public company on Chinese sales.

American Superconductor rose as much as $10.19, or 39 percent, to $36.47.

Net income for the fiscal first quarter was $1.79 million, or 4 cents a share, compared with a loss of $6.1 million, or 14 cents, a year earlier, the Devens company said. Its first profit was posted in the quarter ended March 31. Sales rose 83 percent to $73 million, on Chinese demand for its wind-power components.

Gross margin, a measure of production costs against sales, will be up to 34 percent for the year, up from earlier guidance of 32 percent. Sales guidance for the year was raised to $260 million to $270 million from $225 million to $235 million, the company said. Net income will be 11 cents to 16 cents a share, compared with an earlier forecast of 1 cent to 3 cents.

Scientific instruments maker PerkinElmer Inc. said second-quarter profit fell 9 percent and said constrained hospital spending due to the economy would likely keep it from achieving the high end of its full-year earnings forecast.

Net profit fell to $21.5 million, or 18 cents per share, from $23.7 million, or 20 cents per share, a year ago.

Excluding items, the Waltham company had adjusted earnings of 28 cents per share, edging past analysts’ average forecasts by a penny, according to Reuters Estimates.

PerkinElmer said it now expects full-year earnings excluding items of $1.18 to $1.24, essentially cutting 8 cents from the top end of the wide forecast range it gave at the beginning of the year.

That would put earnings below Wall Street’s current estimate of $1.29 per share for the year, according to Reuters Estimates. Sales for the quarter fell 14 percent to $434.6 million. A stronger dollar accounted for 6 percent of the decline, the company said.