TotalEnergies SE (TTE) stock rose more than 1% in Thursday's premarket trading after the French energy giant reported better-than-expected third-quarter 2026 earnings, driven by stronger refining margins and higher natural gas prices.
TotalEnergies reported adjusted earnings of $4.03 per share, beating analysts' consensus estimate of $3.92.
Revenue of $66.819 billion missed expectations of $79.190 billion.
Adjusted net income reached $9.1 billion, while cash flow totaled $12.3 billion. Both increased sharply from the previous quarter, supported by stronger refining margins and higher gas prices.
Production Growth and Expansion Plans
Hydrocarbon production rose 3% quarter over quarter to 2.474 million barrels of oil equivalent per day. However, production declined 1% year over year.
New project ramp-ups added 4% to production, while improved plant availability contributed another 2%. Natural field declines and the Middle East conflict partially offset those gains.
Excluding the conflict's impact, production would have increased more than 4% year over year.
TotalEnergies also advanced investment decisions on four projects across Cyprus, Nigeria, the United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan.
The company aims to increase annual production by more than 3% through 2030.
Cash Flow and Shareholder Returns
TotalEnergies reduced its gearing ratio by 4 percentage points from the previous quarter to 9.1%.
Free cash flow after dividend payments exceeded $6 billion, strengthening the company's balance sheet.
Net investments totaled $3.3 billion during the quarter, down 5% sequentially. Investments reached $11.2 billion for the first nine months of 2026.
The company maintained its third interim dividend at 90 euro cents per share, up 5.9% from 2025.
Its board also authorized $2.5 billion in share buybacks for cancellation in each of the fourth quarter of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027.
The plan supports TotalEnergies' goal of returning 40% of cash flow to shareholders.
Refining and LNG Drive Earnings
TotalEnergies' downstream business delivered record adjusted net operating income of $4.1 billion, up 77% from the previous quarter.
Cash flow reached $4.6 billion as refining throughput increased approximately 10%, allowing the company to benefit from elevated global refining margins.
The integrated LNG segment reported adjusted net operating income of $1.9 billion, up from $807 million in the previous quarter.
Higher LNG prices and stronger trading activity supported results.
Exploration and production generated $3.2 billion in adjusted net operating income, down 2% sequentially.
Meanwhile, integrated power earnings rose 13% to $602 million, supported by higher electricity production.
Fourth-Quarter Outlook
TotalEnergies expects oil prices to exceed $100 per barrel and LNG prices to surpass $14 per million British thermal units in the fourth quarter.
The company forecasts production growth above 3%, excluding disruptions from the Middle East conflict. Refining throughput is expected to remain stable.
TotalEnergies maintained its full-year net investment forecast of approximately $15 billion.
TTE Stock Price Activity: TotalEnergies shares were up 1.53% at $94.30 during premarket trading on Thursday, according to market data.
