Shell Posts Record First-Quarter Profit On Boost From Gas Unit

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(Bloomberg) -- Shell Plc posted a record first-quarter profit and maintained the pace of share buybacks as a strong trading performance and higher liquefied natural gas volumes offset lower energy prices.

The company will repurchase a further $4 billion of shares, the same amount as in the prior period. That contrasts with UK peer BP Plc, which saw its share price drop more than 8% earlier this week when it announced a smaller buyback of $1.75 billion.

It's a difference that could help new Chief Executive Officer Wael Sawan reinforce his message that Shell can stand above the competition by reliably delivering generous cash returns to investors.

“Following BP's cut to the buyback, we received many questions on what Shell would do this quarter given a weaker macro environment,” RBC analyst Biraj Borkhataria said in a note. “What was the fuss about?”

Shell shares rose as much as 3.5% before paring gains to 2,354 pence as of 11:45 a.m. in London.

The integrated gas business was a key part of the resilience of Shell's profit. It posted adjusted earnings of $4.9 billion in the quarter, the second-best performance on record after the prior period. The price of the fuel was down from a year earlier as the energy crisis ebbed in Europe, but the company offset that with higher volumes and lower operating expenses.

Crucial to that segment are Shell's gas traders. While the company doesn't break out trading's contribution to earnings, the company said results were similar to the fourth quarter, when it was a main contributor to record profits for the unit.

“Trading and more importantly optimization in general play a critical role in our business model today for the conventional energy,” Sawan said on a call with reporters. “But I think will play an even bigger role going forward as we look at new energies.”

“Against a lower commodity-price backdrop in the first quarter, Shell's wide beat with adjusted earnings at $9.65 billion, 20% ahead of consensus, and roughly in line with fourth-quarter levels, is largely a testament to the strength of its industry-leading global gas portfolio.” — Bloomberg Intelligence Senior Industry Analyst Will Hares

Shell's adjusted net income was $9.65 billion in the first quarter, an increase of 5.7% from $9.13 billion a year earlier. That was well ahead of even the highest analyst estimate and a record level for the first quarter. Net debt dropped to $44.2 billion, down more than $4 billion from a year ago.

Production volumes of liquefied natural gas — which has become a key fuel for Europe after Russia cut gas exports — jumped 6% in the quarter with the Prelude facility in Australia returning to operations after maintenance, Shell said. Greater output driving earnings has been a theme this season with Exxon reporting it strongest-ever start to a year after a jump in oil production from new wells.

Shell has scheduled an investor briefing for June when Sawan, who took over the top job at the beginning of the year, will lay out his own strategy. “We would expect any adjustment to the dividend or overall distribution framework to be left for the capital markets day,” said RBC's Borkhataria.

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