12 Best Oil Refinery Stocks To Invest In According to Analysts

5. Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL)

Stock Upside Potential: 15.94%

Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) is a global group of energy and petrochemical companies, employing 103,000 people and with operations in more than 70 countries. The energy joint is also deeply involved in oil refining and had interests in eight refineries worldwide in 2023, with a capacity to process a total of 1.6 million barrels of crude oil a day.

Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) reported a significant drop in its annual profits for 2024, posting adjusted earnings of $23.72 billion for the full year, compared to $28.25 billion in 2023. The drop was primarily due to the narrower LNG trading margins, lower oil and gas prices, and weaker refining margins. However, the oil and gas giant still increased its dividend by 4% and launched another share buyback program of $3.5 billion, making this the 13th consecutive quarter of at least $3 billion of share repurchases. Shell maintains a strong balance sheet and generated a full-year operating cash flow of $54.68 billion in 2024, beating analyst expectations. It also reduced its net debt by $4.7 billion during the year, despite the generous payouts to its shareholders.

Shell is also a pioneer in the global LNG industry and has several major new expansion projects in the pipeline, including in the US and Qatar, the two largest LNG exporters in the world. As a result, Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) is also included in our list of the 10 Best Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Stocks to Buy in 2025.