Shell (LSE:SHEL) reported adjusted first-quarter earnings of $6.9bn, beating expectations as its trading and downstream businesses benefited from elevated oil and gas prices during the Iran conflict.
The London-listed oil supermajor declared a 5% increase in its dividend to $0.3906 per share and said it is commencing a $3.0 billion share buyback programme for the next three months.
The rise is in line with Shell’s 40-50% of cash from operations (CFFO) distribution policy and is supported by $17.2 billion of CFFO excluding working capital and $6.9 billion of adjusted earnings for Q1 2026, while a working capital outflow of $11.2 billion weighed on cashflow.
"Today, consistent with our value driven capital allocation philosophy, we are rebalancing our shareholder distributions with a $3 billion share buyback and a 5% increase in the dividend," said Wael Sawan, Chief Executive Officer.
The buyback is intended to run for three months but will be suspended during the ARC Resources shareholder circular period, with any buybacks missed during suspension to be added to the remaining 2026 programmes subject to Board approval.
Brokers and trading firms, including eToro, highlighted that Shell's beat was supported by stronger trading, improved refining margins and robust downstream and LNG performance, and noted shareholder returns continued via buybacks and a dividend increase despite working-capital headwinds.
Outside the City's corporate comms, a Guardian report pointed to criticisms from climate campaigners, who call the gains a "windfall" from the war, and claimed traders were reaping the benefits of soaring energy prices.
Energy market commentators, meanwhile, warn the geopolitical flip side remains, given that the conflict is disrupting LNG volumes, and production cuts from attacks on Qatari infrastructure may take more than 12 months to recover.
