Royal Dutch Shell Increases Sales but Misses Estimates on Earnings

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Royal Dutch Shell (NYS: RDS.A) reported earnings on Feb. 2. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Royal Dutch Shell beat expectations on revenue and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue grew and GAAP earnings per share shrank.

Gross margins increased, operating margins grew, and net margins dropped.

Revenue details
Royal Dutch Shell tallied revenue of $115.58 billion. The two analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ foresaw revenue of $103.81 billion. Sales were 18% higher than the prior-year quarter's $100.71 billion.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $1.56. The earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $1.83 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $1.04 for Q4 were 6.3% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.11 per share.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Figures may be non-GAAP to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 17.0%, 180 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 10.2%, 230 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 5.5%, 120 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $76.39 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $2.65.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $446.27 billion. The average EPS estimate is $9.15.

Investor sentiment

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Royal Dutch Shell is outperform, with an average price target of $80.91.

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At the time thisarticle was published Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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