By Adam Whittaker

Shell is scheduled to report results for the fourth quarter on Thursday. Here is what you need to know.

EARNINGS FORECAST: Shell is expected to post adjusted earnings--a closely watched company metric--of $3.51 billion, according to a Vara Research-polled consensus of 23 analysts. This compares with $5.43 billion it reported in the preceding quarter and $3.66 billion a year earlier.

CASH FLOW FORECAST: Shell is expected to book $7.87 billion in cash flow from operating activities, according to analysts polled by Vara. This is below the $12.21 billion it booked in the prior quarter.

Shares have underperformed peers over the year to date, rising 3% compared with British peer BP's near 10% increase and France's TotalEnergies' 12% climb.

--Shell's fourth-quarter trading update warned of a weak oil trading performance. The energy major also narrowed guidance for its liquefied natural gas production. The update triggered downward revisions to consensus profit expectations due to the weaker downstream performance dragging on earnings.

--Shell's shareholder distributions have been more resilient than peers--a theme that is likely to continue, RBC Capital Markets analysts Biraj Borkhataria and Adnan Dhanani wrote in a note. The analysts expect Shell to continue its $3.5 billion buyback.

--Investors will be wanting to hear more from management about plans to boost its resources base.

Write to Adam Whittaker at adam.whittaker@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 04, 2026 05:59 ET (10:59 GMT)

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