What do you think of Royal Dutch Shell, Shell $SHEL for short, perhaps I would say a bit neglected in this industry.

For brief info: -> 😊

Royal Dutch Shell, one of the largest companies in the world in terms of revenue. It is involved in the production and processing of oil and gas. Shell is incorporated in the United Kingdom and has many offices around the world including Canada, Nigeria and India. The company was founded in London in 1907 as part of a merger between the Royal Dutch Petroleum Company and Shell Transport and Trading Company Limited. The company has full segments ranging from exploration and production of oil, natural gas. It is also involved in the processing of natural gas, gas liquids and other fuels, products. It also owns refining, trading, marketing.

Today, the company said and made shareholders very happy with its outlook. From their cash flow from operations, they intend to lift the distribution to shareholders from 20% of existing to 30-40%. This will mean a dividend increase of an expected 15% starting in the second quarter. They also intend to conduct a share buyback of up to $5 billion in the second half of this year.

"Performance, discipline and simplification will be our guiding principles as we allocate capital to improve distribution to shareholders while enabling the energy transformation," said Shell CEO Wael Sawan. "We will invest in models that work - models with the highest returns that contribute to our strengths," Sawan added

Shell's focus on performance and capital discipline comes as the company seeks to close what many see as a growing valuation gap between European and U.S. oil majors. The British oil major reported record annual profits of nearly $40 billion for 2022. The company also added that capital spending will be cut to $22 billion to $25 billion a year in 2024 and 2025.

Of course, the sector is cyclical, furthermore, it also faces constant environmental pressures from the climate. At the same time, $SHEL reiterated its commitment to its climate goals, saying it is making "good progress" toward becoming a zero-emissions business by 2050.

I have the company in my portfolio, bought on the downturn this year, and so far I'm happy with it. We've had news around US companies lately, but I also like this company, it has an impressive history too. What is your opinion and if you have/could you consider buying?