JPMorgan's Fred Lucas gazes into his crystal ball: It's early February 2011 and ExxonMobil...

JPMorgan's Fred Lucas gazes into his crystal ball: It's early February 2011 and ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) CEO Rex Tillerson has just concluded a marathon board meeting ahead of XOM's Q4 results. The meeting has been lengthened to address the future of BP (NYSE:BP). Advisors are encouraging him to make a preemptive offer using ExxonMobil's more highly rated paper, and exploit the stubborn rating differential that persisted.