Shell makes $6.2 billion in profits and announces a $3.5 billion share buyback

British oil giant Shell on Thursday reported profits of $6.2 billion in the third quarter, roughly in line with estimates, as the company benefited from higher oil prices and refining margins.

Analysts expected adjusted earnings of $6.48 billion, according to the LSEG consensus.

Earnings were higher than $5.1 billion in the second quarter, but a sharp decline from the $9.45 billion recorded a year ago, when conflict between Russia and Ukraine supported oil and gas prices.

The company also announced a $3.5 billion stock buyback over the next three months. Shell CEO Wael Sawan said that the $6.5 billion scheduled for the second half of the year “far exceeds” the $5 billion announced in June.

“Shell achieved another quarter of strong operational and financial performance, exploiting opportunities in volatile commodity markets,” Sawan said in a statement.

Free cash flow fell from $12.1 billion in the second quarter to $7.5 billion. Cash capital expenditures increased from $5.1 billion to $5.6 billion.

Major energy companies are starting to post record profits after a year driven by rising fossil fuel prices.

BP on Tuesday reported a year-over-year decline in third-quarter profit from $8.15 billion to $3.293 billion, below analyst estimates, despite France’s Total Energy outperforming slightly last week.

Oil prices rose sharply during the quarter on the back of factors including Saudi and Russian supply cuts, while the International Energy Agency said oil markets would remain on edge amid escalating conflict in the Middle East.