Shell boosts share buyback as oil, gas prices bolster profitBloombergShell PLC expanded its share buybacks after reporting profit that comfortably exceeded analyst estimates on the back of surging energy prices. The positive fourth-quarter earnings cap a tumultuous year in which Shell was targeted by activist investor Dan Loeb, relocated its headquarters to London and dropped “Royal Dutch” from its name. Yet the company has also been buoyed by surging oil and gas prices, causing the biggest annual share-price gain in five years. “Today we are stepping up our distributions with the announcement of an US$8.5 billion share buyback program.”Ever since Shell slashed its dividend in 2020 during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, Van Beurden has been seeking to lure back investors by improving returns. The company had already pledged to give back to investors US$5.5 billion of the cash proceeds from the sale of its Permian-basin oil assets.

Source: Taipei Times February 04, 2022 00:57 UTC