(ABM FN-Dow Jones) Shell posted a higher-than-expected profit in the first quarter. This emerged from figures from the energy giant on Thursday.
Last quarter posted an adjusted profit of $7,734 million, while analysts contributing to the consensus expected $6,462 million. That was $7,306 million in the fourth quarter. In the first quarter of 2023, a profit of $ 9,646 million was recorded.
Shell’s operating free cash flow amounted to more than $13.3 billion, compared to a forecast of $13.2 billion by analysts. That was $14.2 billion in the first quarter of 2023 and $12.6 billion in the fourth quarter.
At the beginning of April, Shell provided a provisional update for the first quarter, in which the group expressed itself positively about the performance of Integrated Gas in the first quarter. Shell did warn that the results from this branch would be lower than in the final months of 2023. The adjusted profit then amounted to 3,968 million dollars. On Thursday it emerged that the adjusted profit from this branch in the past quarter amounted to 3,680 million dollars.
The average analyst expectation was that adjusted profit at Integrated Gas would have been $2,895 million in the first quarter.
Marketing results will be similar to those in the fourth quarter, Shell said in April. This was indeed the case with adjusted Marketing profit of $781 million compared to $794 million a quarter earlier.
And at Chemicals & Products, performance would be much higher than in the fourth quarter, when adjusted profit at this branch amounted to $29 million, Shell expected. This turned out to be $1.6 billion in the first quarter. Analysts were aiming for $1.1 billion.
The Upstream division expected a profit of $2,160 million in the first quarter. That was $3,060 million in the fourth quarter of 2023 and eventually became $1,933 million in the first quarter of 2024.
Shell also announced a share buyback program worth $3.5 billion, to be completed when the second quarter results are published. Shell still wants to pay a dividend of $0.344 per share.
Debt fell by $3 billion quarter-on-quarter to $40.5 billion.
Outlook
Shell aims to spend 22 to 25 billion dollars in costs this year. Adjusted profit should be between $1.7 billion and $2.3 billion. For the whole of 2024, the analyst consensus expects an adjusted profit for Shell of $2,389 million.
Source: ABM Financial News
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