Halliburton on Wednesday reported a second-quarter loss and less revenue than it earned in the same period last year, but said it thinks the North American oil market had turned around.
The oil fields services company posted an adjusted loss per share from continuing operations of $0.14, better than analysts' median estimate for a loss of $0.19, according to Bloomberg. Revenue totaled $3.84 billion (versus $3.76 billion expected), a 35% year-over-year decline.
"We believe the North America market has turned," Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar said in the earnings statement. "We expect to see a modest uptick in rig count during the second half of the year."
Halliburton's North American revenue fell 15% year-over-year to $1.5 billion.
Lesar also said there were still challenges in the Middle East and Asia, where revenue declined 3% from the first quarter.
The company's count of oil rigs fell 15% year-on-year, below the average US decline of 23%. The company said it thought the count had reached a "landing point," as rising oil prices gave more producers confidence to bring more rigs online.
The US oil-rig count rose by 11 in the last week of June, its biggest weekly increase in six months, according to Baker Hughes. The tally's steep decline after the worst oil-price crash in decades stabilized in about mid-May.
The company noted that it paid Baker Hughes a $3.5 billion termination fee during Q2 after the scrapping of the companies' $28 billion merger. The deal faced strong opposition from regulators in the US and in Europe.
Halliburton shares were little changed in premarket trading after the earnings release. They have gained 32% this year.
