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Is Royal Dutch Shell Plc Making A Big Mistake By Acquiring BG Group plc?

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By Rupert Hargreaves | Fool.co.uk: 9 November 2015

Royal Dutch Shell’s (LSE: RDSB) £47bn cash-and-stock offer for BG (LSE: BG) is one of the largest takeover deals ever to take place in the UK. However, the deal is also rapidly becoming one of the most controversial takeover deals ever to take place here. One fund management is now openly calling for Shell to scrap its offer for BG. 

Call to reject the offer

It emerged this weekend that Ian McVeigh, head of governance at Jupiter Fund Management and one of the City’s biggest fund managers, has compared the proposed takeover of BG by Shell to the disastrous purchase of ABN Amro by Royal Bank of Scotland in 2007. RBS’s ill-fated takeover of ABN Amro ultimately resulted in the government bailout of RBS and years of pain for the bank.  read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Why Shares In Royal Dutch Shell Plc Are In Danger Of Shedding Another 17%!

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Shell has shed a staggering 37% of its value since Brent’s alarming slump kicked in last summer… I do not believe Shell has yet seen the worst of it… Bad news keeps on coming…

By Royston Wild – Monday, 7 September 2015

Eroding market appetite for Royal Dutch Shell (LSE: RDSB) picked up speed in recent weeks thanks to the unravelling Chinese economy, and the business has seen its stock price sink 12% since the start of August, striking out at fresh five-year lows around £15.85 per share in the process.

Shell has shed a staggering 37% of its value since Brent’s alarming slump kicked in last summer, and although a recovery in the black gold price helped the firm recover some ground at the start of the year, a stream of worrying industry news items since then has sent prices in both commodity and company scurrying lower yet again. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

BP plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc Will Have To Survive Without $100 Oil

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By Harvey Jones – Tuesday, 11 August, 2015

Low oil prices have sunk share prices at BP (LSE: BP) and Royal Dutch Shell (LSE: RDSB) and there is no sign of immediate respite.

There was a flicker of hope as Brent crude climbed to nearly $68 a barrel in May, but it has now slid below $50 again, and worse could follow.

The notion that lower prices would put the skids on supply, especially from US shale rigs, has been discredited. Shale technology is coming on in leaps and bounds, driving constant cost savings for drillers.

US frackers continue to add an extra million barrels of oil a day to global supply, even before Iran floods the market with its stockpiles. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Can You Really – Really – Be Sure Of Shell?

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By Owain Bennallack – Thursday, 18 June, 2015

Making glib comments about the flaws of tracker funds – or even more so the foolishness of those who invest in them – is a mug’s game. 

The evidence shows that over the long term, tracker funds beat most actively managed ones, not least because of the far higher costs of keeping a fund manager in Ferraris, versus plugging an old PC into the mains and dusting it now and then. 

Okay, I exaggerate… but only a little. 

However strange it may seem, warts-and-all tracker funds holding a seemingly sub-optimal mix of shares tend to beat the majority of carefully chosen portfolios – even though a fund manager is free to avoid the basket cases and double-down on the good companies that seem cheap.  read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Why I’d Buy British American Tobacco plc Before Royal Dutch Shell Plc

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By Peter Stephens – Tuesday, 16 June, 2015

EXTRACTS

For investors in Shell the last year has been particularly tough. The declining oil price has hit its profitability and investor sentiment very hard, with Shell’s share price falling by 24% during the period, while the outlook for ‘black gold’ remains highly uncertain.

While Shell’s financial performance is significantly dependent upon the price of oil, which it cannot control, British American Tobacco’s bottom line is exceptionally stable. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Could Shares In BP plc And Royal Dutch Shell Plc Collapse By More Than A Third?!

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By Royston Wild – Friday, 29 May, 2015

“In my opinion both stocks are in danger of a severe share price collapse as the oil market outlook becomes ever gloomier.”

Shares across much of the oil sector have received a massive fillip in recent months in line with a recovery in the crude oil price. After the Brent barometer shuttled from $115 per barrel last summer to multi-year lows around $45 in January, a subsequent reduction in the US rig count has underpinned a solid price recovery — indeed, the benchmark was recently trading around the $64 mark.

With investors hoping these measures will represent a sea-change in the oil market’s supply/demand dynamics from next year, shares in oil major BP (LSE: BP) (NYSE: BP.US) have flipped 10% higher since the turn of the year. Investor sentiment in Shell (LSE: RDSB) (NYSE: RDS-B.US) has wavered more recently, however, and the stock is now trading 11% lower from the close of 2014. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Shell’s Fatal Mistake In Buying BG Group?

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When Shell announced that it was planning to buy BG Group last month, opposition to the deal started to build immediately. 

By Rupert Hargreaves – Tuesday, 26 May, 2015

Extracts

I’m always on the lookout for companies that are not acting in the best interests of shareholders.

Indeed, as shareholders are ultimately owners of the businesses they invest in, management teams should, at all times, act in the best interests of shareholders.

But in many cases, management ignores this fundamental goal. 

And there are signs that Gulf Keystone Petroleum and Shell’s executives have made this fatal mistake.   read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Shell BG £55bn merger could still fall apart.

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By Rupert Hargreaves – Wednesday, 13 May, 2015

BG (LSE: BG) and Royal Dutch Shell’s (LSE: RDSB) mega-merger is the largest deal the oil & gas sector has seen for some time. However, the combination isn’t a done deal just yet. 

There are still many kinks to iron out, and the deal has to get the green light from regulators. What’s more, Shell could decide to walk away if the numbers don’t stack up

Poor results 

BG has been struggling for some time, and the group’s recent set of results highlighted the company’s troubles. Specifically, BG’s first-quarter net profit fell 51% to £366m and revenue slumped by 21% to £2.6bn as weak oil prices weighed on group profits. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Why The Oil Price Could Fall Even Further

Screen Shot 2015-01-12 at 08.45.23From an article by Prabhat Sakya published 24 March 2015 by The Motley Fool under the headline:

BP plc And Royal Dutch Shell plc: Why The Oil Price Could Fall Even Further

The oil price has fallen dramatically since last summer. This has meant difficult times for the oil producers, including companies such as BP and Royal Dutch Shell.

…people have been buying more fuel-efficient cars, and there has been huge investment in technologies such as hybrid, electric and fuel cell vehicles.

So supply has been steadily increasing, and demand has been falling, and the world now has too much oil. Oil prices have begun a downtrend; and I don’t think that this fall will just last a few months, before bouncing back. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Shell Doomed Project Scalebacks

Screen Shot 2015-01-12 at 08.45.23From an article by Royston Wild published 15 Jan 2015 by The Motley Fool under the headline:

“Why Royal Dutch Shell Plc And BP plc’s Project Scalebacks Are Doomed To Fail”

With the oil price collapse showing no signs of bottoming any time soon, the world’s fossil fuel giants are in a desperate struggle to ratchet up their cost-saving initiatives and cut their exposure to what is becoming an increasingly perilous market.

Just yesterday, Royal Dutch Shell (LSE: RDSB) announced that it was stopping work on a £4.3bn petrochemicals plant with Qatar Petroleum. Construction of the huge Al-Karaana complex started in 2012, but Shell has been forced to bin the operation due to “high capital costs rendering it commercially unfeasible, particularly in the current economic climate prevailing in the energy industry.” read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc a Basket Case Long After 2015?

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 11.59.38From an article by Royston Wild published Friday 9 Jan 2015 by The Motley Fool under the headline:

“Why Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BHP Billiton plc And Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc Will Remain Basket Cases Long After 2015” 

Royal Dutch Shell has seen its earnings forecasts painted with red ink; Shell is expected to see earnings drop a meaty 15% in 2015; …the effect of a depressed oil price is likely to put many producers out of business…; Shell could be forced to hive off even more of its assets…

Like the rest of the oil sector, Royal Dutch Shell (LSE: RDSB) has seen its earnings forecasts painted with red ink by City analysts in recent weeks.

Shell is expected to see earnings drop a meaty 15% in 2015, to 295.3 US cents per share. But while a 10% improvement is anticipated for next year, to 325.5 cents, a slumping oil price suggests otherwise. The Brent benchmark’s nosedive took in a fresh multi-year trough below $50 per barrel this week, the lowest since mid-2009, and a figure of $20 before the year is out is being touted with increasing confidence. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc Plunge

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Screen Shot 2014-12-17 at 16.52.18The FTSE 100 has been dipping perilously in the past few weeks, giving up 722 points (10.5%) from its recent high of 6,905 on 4 September to Monday’s close of 6,183 — and if it can lose that much in three months it could certainly drop to 6,000 or lower by the end of December. Often such runs can be put down to individual sectors, and the big safe companies are there to offer some support and prevent a meltdown. But the crucial driver right now is oil. Brent crude crashed through the $60 per barrel level this week to reach its lowest since 2009, and as I write today it’s trading at a fraction under $59! Shell shares slumped by 17% between 21 November and close on 15 December.  read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Liquefied Natural Gas Could Come to the Rescue for Royal Dutch Shell

Screen Shot 2014-04-19 at 10.07.44Extract from a Motley Fool article by Bob Ciura published 19 May 2014 under the headline: How Liquefied Natural Gas Could Come to the Rescue for Royal Dutch Shell and BP

Royal Dutch Shell’s core net profits fell by 23% last year, prompting the company to undergo what management delicately termed “hard choices” in its portfolio. Basically, the company is resorting to cutting capital expenditures in light of disappointing upstream projects and sharply narrower refining margins. To that end, Shell plans to reduce capital expenditures by $9 billion in 2014 from $46 billion in 2013 to an estimated $37 billion this year. That represents a severe 20% drop. This is a concern since Shell’s production is already going in the wrong direction. Oil majors across the board are suspending new projects or cancelling them altogether, which could put them in dire straits later on. Fortunately, LNG represents one major area that both Shell and BP continue to invest in, and the potential is clearly compelling. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc 44% fall in profits

Screen Shot 2014-02-10 at 16.29.29Extract from A Motley Fool article by Mark Stones published 30 April 2014 under the headline:

Royal Dutch Shell Plc Hikes Dividend On Cash Flow Boost

Shell this morning reported a 44% fall in profits on a $2.9bn impairment charge relating to refineries in Asia and Europe. Shell’s profit in the first quarter — stripping out losses relating to the changing value of inventories — fell to $4.5bn from $8bn a year earlier. Revenue fell to $110bn against $113bn.

FULL ARTICLE

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Royal Dutch Shell plc Wasn’t Kidding About Cutting Costs.

Screen Shot 2013-12-22 at 19.09.52Article by Arjun Sreekumar published 16 April 2014 by The Motley Fool under the headline: “Royal Dutch Shell plc Wasn’t Kidding About Cutting Costs. But Will It Pay Off?”

The company recently sold off key downstream assets in Australia, including a major oil refinery and network of some 870 retail gasoline stations, due to weak margins. It also put up for sale numerous North American shale assets last year, including acreage in Texas’ Eagle Ford shale and Kansas’ Mississippi Lime play, because of disappointing drilling results and poor expected returns. Shell has also scrapped plans to construct a massive facility in Louisiana that would have converted natural gas into higher-value liquids because of the project’s high expected costs and uncertainty over long-term price differentials. Lastly, it is also currently marketing oil-producing properties and oil infrastructure in Nigeria, where persistent theft and sabotage continue to plague its operations. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Yet More Problems Hit the World’s Largest Oil Project

Screen Shot 2014-04-06 at 21.01.34Extract from an article by Rupert Hargreaves published 16 April 2014 by The Motley Fool

Simply put, H2S is eating away at the undersea pipelines, causing cracks and fractures. Gas needs to travel through these lines for the project to start production, and engineers can’t just patch the system up; the whole pipeline network may need to be replaced. Not only are ExxonMobil, Shell, Total, and Eni going to have to fork out more cash to get the project into production, but the Kazakhstan government is now starting to lose patience and has threatened to impose financial penalties on the companies if production does not commence soon. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.
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