Shell nearly doubled its quarterly profit year over year to $10.81 billion and posted record refining margins, the oil company said Thursday, as geopolitical turmoil drives up crude prices and creates fuel shortages. Adjusted earnings, the company’s measure of net profit, soared from $5.43 billion a year ago. It was the strongest gain since the second quarter of 2022, following Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine. Analysts expected the figure to be $9.92 billion between July and September, according to a consensus compiled by LSEG. Indicative refining margins were $42 per barrel, breaking the previous record of $28.04 per barrel in the second quarter of 2022, meeting the company’s forecast from earlier in the month. Shell’s London-listed shares rose about 3% in morning trading, hitting an all-time high. iconShell share price. The company boosted its share buybacks, announcing a $5 billion equity program to be completed in the next three months, up from $3 billion in the previous quarter. Chief Executive Wael Sawan said the company experienced strong operational performance amid “a serious and continuing disruption to the global energy system.” billion in the previous quarter. Capital spending outlook for 2026 was lowered to the range of $23 to 25 billion from $24 billion to $26 billion. The reduction in net debt was impressive given that Shell completed a $16.4 billion acquisition of Canadian energy firm ARC to allow it to increase production, Maurizio Carulli, equity research analyst for global energy and materials at Quilter Cheviot Investment Management, told CNBC on Thursday. Carulli said it was an impressive performance across all of the company’s businesses. divisions, noting that it expected more “small acquisitions” of attractive targets, but not a major reshaping of its portfolio going forward. Shell recently divested its wind and solar business in India and is reportedly looking to sell its UK-based chemicals joint venture with Exxon. Refined products crisis boosts industry France’s TotalEnergies also benefited from market dynamics, more than doubling its adjusted net income to $9.1 billion in third-quarter results released Thursday. said. Stock Chart Icon Stock Chart Icon Brent Crude Oil.
