Shell (NYSE:SHEL) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.30 EPS

Shell (NYSE:SHEL - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The energy company reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.30, Zacks reports. Shell had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 12.75%. The company had revenue of $69.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $79.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.40 EPS.

Shell Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of Shell stock opened at $66.67 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $200.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $65.90. Shell has a 52-week low of $58.55 and a 52-week high of $74.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SHEL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised shares of Shell from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Shell from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $66.50 to $79.80 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Shell from $87.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Shell in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Shell in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $77.73.

Shell announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, May 2nd that permits the company to buyback $3.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the energy company to repurchase up to 1.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Shell

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Shell stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL - Free Report) by 51.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,463 shares of the energy company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,545 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC's holdings in Shell were worth $468,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.60% of the company's stock.

Shell Company Profile

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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