Shell boosts share buybacks as profit soars on high oil, gas prices

The company had already pledged to give back to investors $5.5 billion of the cash proceeds from the sale of its Permian-basin oil assets.

Shell Plc expanded its share buybacks after reporting profit that blew past 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. 

“We delivered very strong financial performance in 2021, and our financial strength and discipline underpin the transformation of our company,” Chief Executive Officer Ben van Beurden said