The Shell Gas logo is displayed at a gas station on April 27, 2026 in Austin, Texas.
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British energy major shell The company on Thursday announced better-than-expected first-quarter profits as energy prices soar due to the Iran war.
The oil giant’s adjusted profit for the first three months of the year was $6.92 billion, beating analysts’ expectations of $6.1 billion, according to a consensus compiled by LSEG. Separate analyst estimates provided by the company had predicted Shell’s first-quarter profit of $6.36 billion.
Shell reported adjusted profit of $5.58 billion year-on-year and $3.26 billion for the last three months of 2025.
“In a quarter marked by unprecedented disruption in global energy markets, Shell’s continued focus on business performance resulted in a strong performance,” Shell CEO Wael Sawan said in a statement.
Shell announced it would cut its quarterly share buyback pace from $3.5 billion to $3 billion and increase its dividend by 5% to $0.3906 per share.
The gains come as major energy companies have experienced significant share price increases as fossil fuel prices have soared since the U.S.-Israel-led war against Iran began on February 28.
Continued and severe disruptions through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz have resulted in what the International Energy Agency describes as the greatest energy security threat in history.
Oil prices have risen about 40% since the outbreak of the Iran war, but Brent crude futures and U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures both fell sharply in early trading on hopes for an end to the conflict.
Shell’s net debt was $52.6 billion at the end of the first quarter, up from $45.7 billion at the end of last year.
“Shell’s first-quarter results exceeded both market expectations and my own expectations,” Maurizio Carulli, equity research analyst at Quilter Cheviot Investment Management, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Thursday.
He added: “Net debt is probably the only small negative because net debt has increased from $45 billion at the end of last year to $46 billion and to $52.6 billion this quarter. But this is primarily due to working capital effects, and when oil prices are rising, there is a negative impact in terms of the value of inventory.”
Transactions with ARC Resources
Shell announced last month that it had agreed to acquire Canadian energy company ARC Resources in a production expansion deal worth $16.4 billion, including net debt and leases.
Shell stocks from the beginning of the year to the present.
Shell CEO Wael Sawan said ARC Resources, which is focused on the Monny Shale Basin in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada, is a “high-quality, low-cost, top-quartile, low-carbon-intensive producer” that will strengthen the company’s resource base for decades.
Shell shares fell 2% on Thursday morning. The London-listed stock is up about 15% since the start of the year, lagging behind other stocks. blood pressure, total energy, exxon mobil and chevron.
