Schlumberger Limited. (NYSE: SLB) in the third quarter of FY 17 has reported the adjusted earnings per share of 42 cents, which is in line with the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted earnings per share of 42 cents. The company had reported the adjusted revenue growth of 6 percent to $7.91 billion in the third quarter of FY 17, also in line with the analysts’ estimates for revenue of $7.91 billion. The growth in the third quarter was led by the North America Land GeoMarket, where the company continued to gain market share in both hydraulic fracturing and drilling services despite the decelerating rig count growth. The company also saw strong sequential activity growth in Russia, the North Sea, and Asia, while SLB’s activity in the rest of the world was largely flat compared with the second quarter. SLB stock lost over 2.8% on October 20th, 2017 (As of 11:54AM EDT; Source: Google finance)
During the quarter, Schlumberger repurchased 1.5 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $66.04 per share for a total purchase price of $98 million. the Company’s Board of Directors approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.50 per share of outstanding common stock, payable on January 12, 2018 to stockholders of record on December 6, 2017.
Additionally, on August 22nd, 2017, SLB has acquired the Petrofac interest in Petro-SPM Integrated Services S.A. de C.V. (Petro-SPM), which operates the Pánuco Integrated Service Contract in Mexico. As a result, SLB now owns 100% of Petro-SPM
In addition, Schlumberger Production Management (SPM) and Torxen Energy, a private Canadian E&P company, has entered into an agreement to purchase the Palliser Block asset located in Alberta, Canada, from Cenovus Energy, an integrated Canadian oil company, for cash consideration of approximately $1 billion (CAD 1.30 billion). Under the agreement, which is subject to customary closing conditions, SLB will be the majority nonoperating owner, with the rights to exclusive service provision and Torxen will be the operator.
On the other hand, SLB and Baker Hughes, the world’s top two oilfield services firms, has warned on Friday of a slowdown in North America and a challenging year ahead as crude oil prices stay volatile. SLB said that investments in North America were moderating as energy companies increasingly shied away from chasing higher production at the cost of financial returns. The company’s results and warnings have come amid slowing drilling activity in North America. U.S. rig counts have been falling for several weeks and have recently hit a four-month low, while production has grown at a slower rate than the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s estimate.
SLB stock has fallen 20.68% in a year (source: Google Finance).