Halliburton Posts Loss Amid North American Weakness

By Anne Steele 

Halliburton Co. swung to a loss in the final quarter of the year, hurt by asset write-offs and severance costs amid the downturn in the energy market and drastically lower revenue from its North American business.

Halliburton, the second largest oil-field-services company behind Schlumberger Ltd. and a bellwether for the industry, reported that revenue in its North American operations skidded 54% from a year earlier to $2.16 billion amid continued activity declines and pricing concessions in U.S. land.

The oil giant is in the process of acquiring smaller rival Baker Hughes Inc. in a $35 billion deal. But more than a year after it was announced, the deal is facing a growing list of antitrust concerns from the U.S. Justice Department and other competition authorities world-wide that could threaten the combination.

For the period ended Dec. 31, Halliburton reported a loss of $28 million, or 3 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier profit of $901 million, or $1.06 a share. Excluding special items, per-share earnings from continuing operations were 31 cents, or flat from a year earlier. The company said it recorded Baker Hughes acquisition-related costs of $79 million, or 9 cents a share, in the quarter.

Total revenue slumped 42% to $5.08 billion.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected adjusted earnings of 24 cents on revenue of $5.11 billion.

Weak oil prices and a pullback in drilling activity have spurred consolidation, and rival Schlumberger said late last week it was in talks to buy back its former Iranian unit, Well Services of Iran.

Last week, Schlumberger reported it swung to a fourth-quarter loss as revenue fell 39% and the prolonged energy slump continued to pressure pricing and demand for its services from oil producers. Baker Hughes is set to report its results Thursday.

Shares of Halliburton, which have fallen 26% over the past 12 months, were inactive premarket.

Write to Anne Steele at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 25, 2016 07:41 ET (12:41 GMT)

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