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Shell Launches $5bn Buyback on Strong Quarter

Shell has reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $10.8bn, helped by record refining margins, and will return a further $5bn to shareholders through buybacks while deepening its commitment to gas.

Shell (LON: SHEL), the oil and gas major, reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $10.8bn today and announced a new $5bn share buyback. That compares with $5.4bn a year earlier and $9.8bn in the second quarter, and took adjusted earnings per share to $1.93 from $0.93.

SHEL.LSE
Column chart of Shell adjusted earnings: $5.4bn in Q3 2025, $9.8bn in Q2 2026, $10.8bn in Q3 2026
Shell adjusted earnings by quarter, US$ billion. Source: Shell plc

Refining did the heavy lifting. Shell’s indicative global refining margin, the profit from turning crude into fuels, reached a record $42 a barrel from $24 in the second quarter, lifting Chemicals and Products earnings to $3.9bn from $2.9bn.

Integrated Gas, which covers liquefied natural gas (LNG), earned $3.0bn as gas and LNG prices rose.

Cash held up despite Middle East outages. Operating cash flow was $21.0bn and free cash flow $16.3bn, against $10.0bn a year earlier, and net debt fell to $39.7bn from $41.8bn. Gearing, debt as a share of total capital, eased to 16.6% from 18.7%.

Chief executive Wael Sawan tied the new buyback to that performance.

Our strong delivery allows us to announce a $5 billion share buyback programme for the next three months.

Wael Sawan, Shell

Shell paid out $5.3bn in the quarter, split between $3.2bn of buybacks and $2.2bn of dividends, and finished the $4.2bn programme announced with the second-quarter results. The dividend is $0.3906 a share, up from $0.3580 a year earlier.

The company is also adding gas. It completed the purchase of ARC on the 2nd of September, bringing roughly 370 thousand barrels of oil equivalent a day and an equity value of $14.0bn. Shell also approved LNG Canada Phase 2, which doubles capacity to 28 million tonnes a year, with Shell holding 40% and operations due in the early 2030s.

The fourth quarter carries a one-off. Shell estimates a $6.4bn non-cash loss from the derecognition of its Dutch pension plan, subject to change, and 2026 cash capex is guided at $23bn to $25bn including ARC. Fourth-quarter results and a Capital Markets Update follow on the 4th of February.

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