LONDON: Shell again boosted its dividend and share repurchases on Thursday after fourth quarter profits hit their highest in eight years, fuelled by higher oil and gas prices and strong gas trading performance.
The strong results cap a year of dramatic recovery for Shell and the oil and gas sector after energy demand and prices collapsed in 2020 in the wake of the Coronavirus epidemic.
Shell shares were up 1.2 per cent by 1015 GMT, compared with a 0.1 per cent decline for the broader European energy index.
Shell, which moved its headquarters from The Hague to London last month, said it expected to increase its dividend by 4 per cent in the first quarter of 2022 to $0.25 per share. This will mark the fourth dividend increase since Shell cut its dividend in early 2020 for the first time since the 1940s.
The company also announced it will buy back $8.5 billion worth of shares in the first half of 2022, including $5.5 billion from the sale of its Permian shale assets in the United States.
That compares with share buybacks totalling $3.5 billion in 2021.
“2021 was a momentous year for Shell,” CEO Ben van Beurden said in a statement. — Reuters
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