LONDON (Reuters) – Shell reported on Thursday profits of $9.45 billion in the third quarter, easing from the previous quarter’s record high due to weaker refining and gas trading as the company announced plans to boost its dividend later in the year.Shell also extended its share repurchasing programme, announcing plans to buy $4 billion of stock over the next three months.
The third-quarter adjusted earnings were slightly above an average analyst forecast provided by the company for a $9 billion profit. That compares with record quarterly earnings of $11.5 billion in the previous quarter and $4.1 billion a year earlier.
(Reporting by Ron Bousso and Shadia Nasralla; editing by Jason Neely)
