How to buy or invest in Shell shares
There are two ways you can buy Shell shares. The first is to invest in shares in the traditional sense. This involves share dealing and gives you direct ownership of the shares, making you a company shareholder. You’ll be eligible to receive dividends if paid and have voting rights in company decisions.
Alternatively, you can ‘buy’ shares by speculating on movements in the share price with financial derivatives like spread bets and CFDs. This enables you to go ‘long’ when the share price is rising – or ‘short’ when it falls – without actually owning the asset. Opening a position in this way makes use of leverage, which gives you full market exposure for an initial deposit.
What is Shell’s business model?
Royal Dutch Shell is a global group of energy and petrochemical companies founded more than a century ago. Headquartered in the Netherlands, Shell operates in more than 70 countries and employs over 80,000 people.
Shell’s activities are split into four segments: integrated gas, upstream, downstream and new energies. The company also has a dedicated ‘projects and technology’ division to provide technical assistance and functional leadership to the various business units.
Shell extracts crude oil (which is refined and sold across a range of products) and natural gas, and manufactures and markets petrochemicals. In recent years the company has started to transform its business model by investing in more eco-friendly technologies, like biofuels and renewable energy, with the aim of becoming a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050.
Shell key personnel: who manages the company?
There are 12 people on the Shell board of directors:
| Charles O. Holliday | Chair |
| Euleen Goh | Deputy chair and senior independent director |
| Ben van Beurden | Chief executive officer |
| Jessica Uhl | Chief financial officer |
| Dick Boer | Independent non-executive director |
| Neil Carson OBE | Independent non-executive director |
| Ann Godbehere | Independent non-executive director |
| Catherine J. Hughes | Independent non-executive director |
| Martina Hund-Mejean | Independent non-executive director |
| Sir Nigel Sheinwald GCMG | Independent non-executive director |
| Gerrit Zalm | Independent non-executive director |
| Linda M. Coulter | Company secretary |
How to analyse Shell’s share price
To analyse Shell’s share price properly, you need to consider both fundamental and technical analysis.
Fundamental analysis is focused on external events and influences, financial statements and industry trends. This is done to determine the factors that could cause a company’s share price to rise or fall, as well as the profitability of a company.
Buying Shell shares summed up
- There are two ways you can buy Shell shares. The first is to invest in shares in the traditional sense, while the other is to ‘buy’ shares using derivatives
- You can buy, sell and short shares in Shell with IG. The processes are simple and cost-effective
- Shares in Shell can be analysed using fundamental and technical analysis techniques
- Fundamental analysis involves assessing external factors, industry trends and financial information
- Technical analysis involves the study of price charts using indicators to spot patterns
- Shell’s share price has fallen in response to the lower demand for oil caused by the Covid-19 pandemic