Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) beat Wall Street estimates for quarterly profit on Jan. 22 as higher demand for its oilfield services in international markets offset a slowdown in North America.
Clients in North America, Halliburton’s biggest market by revenue, began pulling back on some drilling services last year amid transportation bottlenecks in the largest U.S. production region and after oil prices slid sharply in the fourth quarter.
An oil glut and concerns about a global economic slowdown have pushed U.S. crude down about 30% since their October high to about $53 per barrel.
Houston-based Halliburton said revenue from North America fell about 2% to $3.3 billion from a year earlier and dropped 11% from the third quarter.
International revenue rose to $2.6 billion from $2.5 billion from a year earlier. It rose 7% from the third quarter.
“In North America, the demand for completions services decreased during the fourth quarter, leading to lower pricing for hydraulic fracturing services,” CEO Jeff Miller said in a statement.
The number of active hydraulic fracturing fleets in the Permian basin fell to 140 in January, versus 192 in June of 2018, a 27% decline, according to data from consultancy Primary Vision.
Miller said the company would “dramatically respond” to the changing market and reduce capital spending. Shares of Schlumberger rose sharply last week after it said it would spend less in 2019.
Halliburton’s international business “continues to show signs of a steady recovery,” Miller added. The company saw an increase in demand for services in Argentina, which help offset some lower activity in North America.
Shares of Halliburton were down 1.5% at $31.76 before the opening bell on Wall Street on Jan. 22.
The company said net income attributable to the company was $664 million, or 76 cents per share, for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with a loss of $824 million or 94 cents per share, a year earlier.
Excluding one-time items, the company earned 41 cents per share, beating analysts’ estimates of 37 cents per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Fourth-quarter revenue was largely flat at $5.94 billion.
Recommended Reading
Huddleston: Haynesville E&P Aethon Ready for LNG, AI and Even an IPO
2025-01-22 - Gordon Huddleston, president and partner of Aethon Energy, talks about well costs in the western Haynesville, prepping for LNG and AI power demand and the company’s readiness for an IPO— if the conditions are right.
Watch for Falling Gas DUCs: E&Ps Resume Completions at $4 Gas
2025-01-23 - Drilled but uncompleted (DUC) gas wells that totaled some 500 into September 2024 have declined to just under 400, according to a J.P. Morgan Securities analysis of Enverus data.
US Drillers Add Oil, Gas Rigs for First Time in 8 Weeks
2024-12-06 - The oil and gas rig count rose by seven to 589 in the week to Dec. 6, its highest since mid-September.
E&P Highlights: Dec. 30, 2024
2024-12-30 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, including a substantial decline in methane emissions from the Permian Basin and progress toward a final investment decision on Energy Transfer’s Lake Charles LNG project.
Winter Storm Snarls Gulf Coast LNG Traffic, Boosts NatGas Use
2025-01-22 - A winter storm along the Gulf Coast had ERCOT under strain and ports waiting out freezing temperatures before reopening.