Why Royal Dutch Shell Outperformed Expectations in Q2 2020

It's been a horrible earnings season for most top oil and gas companies. Oil supermajors ExxonMobil, Chevron, and BP all did worse than expected in Q2 2020 as low oil prices forced drastic spending cuts and the coronavirus pandemic destroyed demand.

Bucking the trend was Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A)(NYSE: RDS.B), which managed to squeak out an adjusted profit of $0.16 per share, versus analysts' expectations of a $0.31-per-share loss. As surprising as it was to see a profit -- even on an adjusted basis -- out of the oil industry, even Shell couldn't pump oil profitably in Q2. Instead, it made money another way.

Here's how CEO Ben Van Beurden and his management team strategically took advantage of unusual conditions in the energy markets to their benefit.

Source Fool.com