REUTERS
Shell to boost shareholder returns after oil price rise
- Shell to boost returns to 20%-30% of free cashflow
- Company to “retire” $65 bln net debt target
- Spending to stay below $22 billion in 2021 as planned
- Second quarter LNG trading “significantly” below average
Ron Bousso: July 7, 2021
LONDON, July 7 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) will boost returns to shareholders via share buybacks or dividends earlier than expected after a sharp rise in oil and gas prices helped it reduce debt, the Anglo-Dutch energy firm said on Wednesday.
Shell will increase its distribution to shareholders to 20% to 30% of cash flow from operations beginning in the second quarter, the company said in a trading statement before quarterly results.
The move, which comes earlier than many analysts had expected, was due to “strong operational and financial delivery, combined with an improved macroeconomic outlook.”
Analysts had largely expected Shell to increase distribution towards the end of the year, but a strong rise in oil and natural gas prices in recent months accelerated the timetable.
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