Helmerich & Payne Inc. HP recently reported second-quarter fiscal 2018 adjusted operating loss of 5 cents per share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. However, the bottom line compared favorably with the year-ago adjusted loss of 47 cents. The outperformance was primarily driven by higher drilling activity at its biggest segment — U.S. Land.
Revenues of $577.5 million topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $562 million. Further, the top line witnessed an increase of more than 42.5% from the year-ago figure of $405.3 million.
Helmerich & Payne, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Helmerich & Payne, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | Helmerich & Payne, Inc. Quote
Segment Performance
U.S. Land: During the quarter, operating revenues totaled $482.7 million (83.6% of total revenues), up 45.9% year over year. While average rig revenue per operating day was $22,928, — 1.2% above the year-ago period — average rig margin per day was up 25.6% to $8,842. Moreover, utilization levels of 59% in the quarter under review (versus 42% in second-quarter fiscal 2017) resulted in an operating income of 27.1 million at the segment, marking a turnaround from the year-ago loss of $51.9 million.
Offshore: Helmerich & Payne’s Offshore revenues came in at around $33 million, compared with $36.2 million in the prior-year quarter. Daily average rig revenues fell 6.7% to $33,583 and average rig margin per day fell 12.1% to $9,504. Owing to this, the segment’s operating income decreased 7.8% to $5.5 million. Moreover, rig utilization was down from the year-ago level of 77% to 63%.
International Land: Helmerich & Payne’s International Land operations generated revenues of $52.5 million, up from $34.8 million in the prior-year quarter. Average daily rig revenues were $32,796, down 12.2% from the corresponding period of last year and rig margin per day was $8,533, up from the year-ago figure of $3,691.
Additionally, average rig expense per day decreased 27.9% year over year, while activity levels increased to 45% from 25% a year ago. As a result, the segment’s operating loss narrowed to $695 thousand from the year-ago loss of around $11 million.
Capital Expenditure & Balance Sheet
During the quarter, Helmerich & Payne spent approximately $99.5 million on capital programs. As of Mar 31, 2018, the company had approximately $334.8 million in cash, while long-term debt stood at $493.4 million (debt-to-capitalization ratio of 9.9%).
Guidance
The Tulsa, OK-based company expects activity in the U.S. land segment to rise 7% sequentially during the third quarter of fiscal 2018. While average rig revenue per day is likely to be around $23,000, daily average rig cost is expected to be roughly $14,400 during the quarter.
As of the offshore segment, Helmerich & Payne expects average rig margin per day to be around $10,500 during third-quarter fiscal 2018 and revenue days to increase 15% sequentially.
The international land segment will likely witness a 5-10% sequential increase in revenue days during the quarter, while average rig margin per day is expected to be around $9,000.
For fiscal 2018, Helmerich & Payne projects a capital budget in the range of $400-$450 million.
Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider
Helmerich & Payne currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
If you are interested in the energy sector, you can opt for some better-ranked stocks like EOG Resources, Inc. EOG, Oasis Midstream Partners LP OMP and CNOOC Ltd. CEO. While EOG Resources sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Oasis Midstream and CNOOC have a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Houston, TX-based EOG Resources is an upstream energy company. For 2018, the bottom line of the company is likely to be up 34.1%. In the last four reported quarters, the company witnessed a positive average surprise of 25.7%.
Houston, TX-based Oasis Midstream is an integrated energy partnership. Its revenues for 2018 are anticipated to improve 29.3% from the prior-year quarter, while its bottom line is expected to increase 337.2%.
Hong Kong-based CNOOC is an integrated energy company. Its revenues for 2018 are anticipated to improve 49% year over year, while its bottom line is expected to increase 82.8%.
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