Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR (NYSE:SHEL) Shares Sold by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. reduced its stake in Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR by 12.8%, selling 17,833 shares to own 121,610 shares worth approximately $8.91 million.
• Shell recently reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.84, exceeding expectations, while also announcing a share buyback program valued at $3.5 billion.
• The company's stock carries a dividend yield of 3.98% with a recent quarterly dividend declared at $0.716 per share, reflecting a payout ratio of 65.90%.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. cut its stake in shares of Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR (NYSE:SHEL - Free Report) by 12.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 121,610 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 17,833 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Shell were worth $8,912,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in Shell in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its stake in Shell by 103.4% during the 1st quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 356 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in Shell during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Summit Securities Group LLC boosted its stake in Shell by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 600 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Shell in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. 28.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Shell Stock Performance

SHEL opened at $71.99 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $69.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.74. Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR has a 1 year low of $58.54 and a 1 year high of $74.46. The company has a market capitalization of $212.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Shell (NYSE:SHEL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The energy company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $69.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.18 billion. Shell had a return on equity of 11.71% and a net margin of 4.75%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.40 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Shell declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, May 2nd that allows the company to buyback $3.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy company to reacquire up to 1.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Shell Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $0.716 per share. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Shell's payout ratio is currently 65.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on SHEL shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Shell from $80.00 to $79.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Shell in a report on Friday, July 11th. TD Securities reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Shell in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Shell from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded Shell to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $78.69.

About Shell

Shell plc operates as an energy and petrochemical company Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa, the United States, and Rest of the Americas. The company operates through Integrated Gas, Upstream, Marketing, Chemicals and Products, and Renewables and Energy Solutions segments. It explores for and extracts crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids; markets and transports oil and gas; produces gas-to-liquids fuels and other products; and operates upstream and midstream infrastructure to deliver gas to market.

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