Oil giant Shell misses fourth-quarter profit estimates as crude prices slide

Financial Performance - Shell reported adjusted earnings of $3.26 billion for Q4 2025, missing analyst expectations of $3.53 billion and a company-provided forecast of $3.51 billion [2] - The company's profit for Q4 2024 was $3.66 billion, and for Q3 2025 it was $5.4 billion, indicating a decline in profitability [2] - For the full year 2025, Shell's adjusted earnings were $18.5 billion, down from $23.72 billion in 2024 [3] Dividend and Share Buyback - Shell announced a 4% increase in its dividend to $0.372 per share and initiated a $3.5 billion share buyback program, marking the 17th consecutive quarter of buybacks exceeding $3 billion [3] Debt and Gearing - At the end of 2025, Shell's net debt was $45.7 billion with a gearing ratio of 20.7%, an increase from $41.2 billion and 18.8% at the end of Q3 2025 [4] Market Environment - The results reflect a challenging market environment with lower oil prices impacting European energy majors, leading to difficult decisions regarding shareholder payouts [4] - Equinor, a competitor, announced significant cuts to share buybacks and investments in response to a 22% drop in Q4 profit, indicating broader industry challenges [5]