Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL) HAL delivered better-than-expected second-quarter 2021 earnings as the Completion and Production segment as well as Drilling and Evaluation segment outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
This world's second-largest oilfield services company after Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) SLB reported earnings of 26 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 22 cents as well as the year-ago quarter’s earnings of 5 cents.
Operating income in the quarter under review was $434 million against the year-ago quarter’s reported operating loss of $1,911 million.
Revenues of $3.71 billion missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.75 billion due to lower-than-expected North America revenues. The North America revenues came in at $1.6 billion, lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.63 billion.
The top line, however, improved from the year-ago quarter’s sales of $3.2 billion. North America revenues increased 49.6% year over year to $1.57 billion.
Outlook
The world’s biggest provider of hydraulic fracking noted that its completion and production division's margin hit a three-year high while the drilling and evaluation division's margin surpassed expectation. This indicates margin growth in both divisions for the current year.
Halliburton’s chairman, president, and CEO Jeff Miller commented that “The positive activity momentum we see in North America and international markets today, combined with our expectations for future customer demand, gives us conviction for an unfolding multi-year upcycle.”
The company's value offering, unique exposure to both worldwide and North American markets, and innovative technology across an integrated services portfolio reinforce its long-term competitive edge, resulting in high free cash flow and industry-leading returns.
Segmental Performance
Operating income from the Completion and Production segment came in at $317 million, soaring 99.4% from the year-ago level of $159 million and also beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $312 million.
The division’s performance was boosted by a ramped-up activity across multiple product service lines in North America land, increased cementing operations in the Eastern Hemisphere and Latin America, higher completion tool sales in the Middle East, the North Sea and Latin America, and a surge in well-intervention services in Saudi Arabia and Algeria.
Drilling and Evaluation unit profit improved from $127 million in the second quarter of 2020 to $175 million in the corresponding period of 2021. The segmental income outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $155 million, attributable to strengthened drilling-related facilities and a rise in wireline activity across all regions apart from more frequent testing services in the Eastern Hemisphere.
Balance Sheet
Halliburton’s capital expenditure in the second quarter was $295 million. As of Jun 30, 2021, the company had $2.66 billion as cash/cash equivalents and $9.12 billion of long-term debt, representing a total debt-to-total capitalization of 62.7%.
Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks
Halliburton currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Investors interested in the energy space can also look at some other top-ranked stocks like Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) Co. MTDR and Helix Energy (NYSE:HLX) Solutions Group, Inc. HLX, each presently flaunting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
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