Diamond Offshore, Helmerich Revenue Declines Not as Bad as Feared

Contract drillers Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. and Helmerich & Payne Inc. each reported sharp revenue declines for their latest quarters, although not as bad as analysts had feared.

However, Helmerich & Payne shares fell 5.3% to $62.61 in morning trading in New York as the company's adjusted per-share loss was wider than expected. Meanwhile, shares of Diamond Offshore rose 1.2% to $24.55 as its per-share earnings beat Wall Street estimates.

The oil-field-services sector has continued to get hit by weak demand as a prolonged commodities downturn has led oil producers to rein in spending and cut costs.

"These are demanding times in the energy service space, and the challenge for many is now one of survival," Helmerich & Payne Chief Executive John Lindsay said. "The U.S. land rig count is comparable to the all-time record lows reached in 1999."

Mr. Lindsay said the company expects drilling activity will deteriorate further in the current quarter as customers continue to reduce spending. However, he also said Helmerich & Payne's long-term contracts have helped it remain profitable.

For it fiscal second quarter ended March 31, Helmerich & Payne reported a profit of $21.2 million, or 19 cents a share, down from $153.5 million, or $1.41 a share, a year earlier. The latest period included net gains of 47 cents a share, while the year-earlier period included net gains of 40 cents a share.

Revenue slumped 51% to $438.2 million amid broad declines across its U.S. land drilling, international land drilling and offshore drilling businesses.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a per-share loss of 18 cents and revenue of $398.3 million.

Diamond Offshore Chief Executive Marc Edwards said that he was pleased with his company's solid results for the latest quarter, which he said demonstrate Diamond Offshore's continuing efforts to manage costs. He also touted the company's fleetwide operational efficiency rate of 98.2% during the quarter, which compared with 91.2% a year earlier.

Over all, Diamond Offshore reported a first-quarter profit of $87 million, or 64 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier loss of $255.7 million, or $1.86 a share, a year earlier.

Revenue decreased 24% to $470.5 million.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected per-share profit of 27 cents and revenue of $412.1 million.

Write to Tess Stynes at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 02, 2016 11:25 ET (15:25 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.