Rowan Companies (RDC) Appoints New Board Member

Rowan Companies plc (NYSE:RDC) recently announced the appointment of Charles L. Szews to its board of directors. The appointment is effective immediately. With this addition, the Rowan board now comprises 10 directors, of whom nine are independent.

Charles L. Szews previously served as CEO of manufacturer and marketer of specialty vehicles and vehicle bodies, Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE:OSK) . He retired from that position in Dec 2015. Szews also held several other positions at Oshkosh, including President and CEO from 2011 to 2012, President and COO from 2007 to 2011 and Executive Vice President and CFO from 1997 to 2007. He currently serves as a director of Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC) and previously served as a director of Gardner Denver Inc. and Oshkosh. We believe the inclusion of Szews as a member of the board will help the company.

Rowan is a global provider of contract drilling services with a fleet of 31 mobile offshore drilling units, composed of 27 self-elevating jack-up rigs and four ultra-deepwater drillships. Long-term growth drivers for Rowan include its high-quality fleet and strong relationships with operators.

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The company’s remarkable cost-control effort is a major positive in the current scenario of volatile commodity prices. Rowan’s premium high-specification rig fleet enjoys greater utilization than most other shallow-water fleet. We believe that the company, with its improved rig execution level, will benefit from the high-spec jackup market and mining equipment orders.

However, in the current scenario of falling oil prices, most of the oil majors are reducing their operations and cutting expenses. Thus, we believe that even Rowan’s earnings will be adversely impacted. Any contract extension on the shelf in the Gulf of Mexico will be at significantly lower dayrates than the earlier ones and will also be for a shorter period. Rowan carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A better-ranked player from the same space is Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) which sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).