Oil giant Shell's quarterly profit takes a hit as crude prices slide, marking its weakest performance in nearly five years. The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea's Shell petrol station, located at 106 Old Brompton Road, London, England, United Kingdom, on December 25, 2025, reflects the company's current financial situation. British oil major Shell reported adjusted earnings of $3.26 billion for the quarter, falling short of analyst expectations of $3.53 billion. This marks Shell's weakest quarterly result since the first three months of 2021, when adjusted earnings were $3.2 billion. For the full year 2025, Shell's adjusted earnings of $18.5 billion were also weaker than the previous year's annual profit of $23.72 billion. Despite these challenges, Shell CEO Wael Sawan stated that 2025 was a year of accelerated momentum with strong operational and financial performance. The company announced a 4% increase in its dividend to $0.372 per share and a $3.5 billion share buyback program, marking 17 consecutive quarters of $3 billion or more in buybacks. Net debt stood at $45.7 billion at the end of last year, with gearing at 20.7%, an increase from the previous quarter. The results come as lower oil prices force European energy majors to make tough choices, with Norway's Equinor cutting share buybacks and investments in renewables. Britain's BP and France's TotalEnergies are scheduled to report fourth-quarter earnings next week, amidst a challenging market environment and expectations of a weak earnings season, which could impact the industry's shareholder payouts.
