Oil major Shell last week reported a 67% surge in fourth quarter earnings on strong revenue growth. Additionally, Shell stock got a key rating upgrade today as its Relative Strength (RS) Rating climbed from 67 to 76.
So why are some big ETFs and mutual funds staying away? One reason is that the strong results come on the heels of spectacular earlier results. Shell reported EPS growth of 186%, 117% and 145% the prior three quarters. The question arises: After quarter-over-quarter growth diminished last quarter, what are prospects for future profit growth like?
Shell Stock Nearing Top Stocks Benchmark
The upwardly revised 76 RS Rating puts Netherlands-based Shell in the top 25% of all stocks, regardless of industry group, for price performance. It also places Shell stock just shy of the benchmark that distinguishes many of the best stocks to buy and watch. Stocks that go on to make the biggest gains tend to have an RS Rating north of 80 as they begin their biggest climbs. See if Shell can continue to rebound and hit that benchmark.
See How IBD Helps You Make More Money In Stocks
Shell stock is working on a cup-with-handle base with a 60.24 entry. Wednesday afternoon, Shell eased fractionally amid market consolidation.
Strong Fundamentals Reflected In Other Ratings
Among its other key ratings Shell has a bullish 86 Earnings Per Share Rating, out of 99. It also carries a decent 83 Composite Rating. One yellow flag is its D- Accumulation/Distribution Rating on an A+ to E scale. The A/D Rating measures buys by institutional investors such as ETFs, insurance funds and the like. The D- rating shows that big money investors are selling more shares of Shell than buying.
Shell's 67% earnings growth last quarter lifted its EPS to $2.78 per share, while its 19% sales growth pushed revenue up to $101.3 billion for the period.
Shell stock earns the No. 7 rank among its peers in the Oil & Gas-Integrated industry group. France's TotalEnergies and Italy-based Eni are among the group's highest-rated stocks.
The exclusive Relative Strength Rating from Investor's Business Daily identifies price action with a 1 (worst) to 99 (best) score. The rating shows how a stock's price movement over the last 52 weeks holds up against all the other stocks in our database.
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