By Melodie Warner
Schlumberger Ltd.'s (SLB) second-quarter earnings rose 4.8% as
the oil-field services provider international revenue helped to
offset weakness in North America.
Schlumberger, the world's largest oil field services company,
has seen its revenue soar in recent quarters as exploration and
production companies ramp up activity in areas like the deep-water
U.S. Gulf of Mexico and vast oil-rich shale formations around the
U.S. But the company has warned that prices for its
pressure-pumping services in North America continue to weaken as
drilling rigs move from natural-gas fields to oil areas.
Schlumberger reported a profit of $1.4 billion, or $1.05 a
share, up from $1.34 billion, or 98 cents, a year earlier.
Excluding items such as merger and integration costs, earnings from
continuing operations rose to $1.03 from 81 cents. Revenue jumped
16% to $10.45 billion.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had most recently forecast
earnings of $1 a share on revenue of $10.41 billion.
Oil-field services revenue from North America, the region which
generates most of the top-line, fell 1.7% from the first quarter to
$3.35 billion.
The Europe/Commonwealth of Independent States/Africa region's
revenue grew 14% from the prior quarter while the Middle East and
Asia posted a 6.7% increase. Latin America revenue was up 5.1%,
sequentially.
Shares closed Thursday at $68.64 and were inactive premarket.
The stock has fallen 22% over the past year.
Write to Melodie Warner at melodie.warner@dowjones.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires