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Helmerich & Payne Earnings Miss Estimates in Q4, Revenues Surpass

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Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (HP - Free Report) reported a fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 adjusted net income of 76 cents per share, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 79 cents. The underperformance was due to weakness in the company's International Solutions and Gulf of Mexico segments.

However, the bottom line topped the year-ago quarter’s reported figure of 69 cents per share. This was due to an improvement in the company's North America Solutions segment.

Operating revenues of $693.8 million outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $687.2 million. Sales from the Drilling Services totaled $691 million, which beat the consensus mark of $684 million. The figure increased 5.2% from the year-ago quarter.

Find the latest EPS estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar.

HP’s board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of 25 cents per share to its common shareholders of record as of Nov. 18 and the payout will be made on Dec. 02.

In fiscal 2024, the company allocated $200 million of free cash flow to declare a base dividend, a supplemental dividend and share repurchases. The company expects to continue to allocate $100 million to declare an annual base dividend of $1/share, and the priority will be on using the free cash flow to reduce the debt burden incurred in connection with the KCA Deutag acquisition.

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

 

HP’s Segmental Performance

North America Solutions: Operating revenues of $618 million increased 7.5% year over year due to higher activity levels and its maintenance of direct margin at a healthy level, with the average number of active rigs at 151. The top line beat our projection of $580.4 million.

Operating profit totaled $155.7 million compared with $128.5 million in the prior-year period. Moreover, the reported figure beat our estimate of $135.1 million.

International Solutions: Operating revenues of $45.5 million decreased 14.5% from the year-ago quarter’s level of $53.2 million and also missed our projection of $49.1 million.

Operating loss reached $5.1 million, widening 1.5% from that recorded in the prior-year period. But the figure came better than our projection of a loss of $4.2 million.

Offshore Gulf of Mexico: Revenues of $27.5 million decreased 4.6% from the year-ago quarter’s level of $28.9 million and marginally missed our projection of $27.6 million.

Operating profit totaled $4.3 million, down 8.5% from that recorded in the prior-year period. The figure also missed our estimate of $4.8 million.

The reason for underperformance is the reduction in the number of active rigs to three as compared to four last year.

HP’s Financial Position

In the reported quarter, this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company spent $495.1 million on capital programs. As of Sept. 30, 2024, the company had $217.3 million in cash and cash equivalents, while the long-term debt totaled $1,782.2 million (debt-to-capitalization of 38%). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

HP’s Guidance for Q1 & FY25

In the first quarter of fiscal 2025, Helmerich & Payne expects operating gross margin to be in the range of $260-$280 million and $7-$9 million for North America Solutions and Offshore Gulf of Mexico, respectively. The company anticipates ending the quarter with 147-153 contracted rigs for North America Solutions.

HP expects International Solutions' direct margins to be between $(2) million and $2 million, exclusive of any foreign exchange gains or losses. The company also expects offshore Gulf of Mexico direct margins to be in the band of $7-$9 million.

Helmerich & Payne estimates a capital outlay to be in the range of $290 to $325 million for fiscal year 2025. The company anticipates that ongoing asset sales, including reimbursements for lost and damaged tubular and sales of other used drilling equipment, will offset a portion of these expenditures and are projected to total $45 million in the fiscal year 2025.

The company expects depreciation and amortization expenses of $400 million and research and development expenses of $32 million. General and administrative expenses are anticipated to be $235 million. Cash taxes are anticipated to be in the $140-$190 million range.

Important Energy Earnings

Let’s glance through a few key earnings releases this season.

Liberty Energy (LBRT - Free Report) , the Denver, CO-based oil and gas equipment company, announced third-quarter 2024 adjusted earnings of 45 cents per share, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 55 cents. The weak Q3 earnings were primarily due to poor equipment and services' execution and lower activity in the reported quarter. LBRT’s bottom line also underperformed the year-ago quarter’s reported figure of 85 cents due to increased costs and expenses.

Ahead of the earnings release, Liberty’s board of directors announced a dividend of 8 cents per common share payable on Dec. 20 to its stockholders of record as of Dec. 6. This dividend represents a 14% increase from the prior regular quarterly dividend of 7 cents per share. In the quarter, Liberty returned $51 million to its shareholders through share repurchases and cash dividends.

Houston, TX-based Baker Hughes Company (BKR - Free Report) , one of the world’s largest oilfield service providers, reported third-quarter 2024 adjusted net income per share of 67 cents, topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 60 cents; it also outperformed the year-ago quarter profit of 42 cents. The strong quarterly earnings were primarily driven by higher operational performance across its segments and improved EBITDA margins, which reached the highest since the company's formation.

The company generated a free cash flow of $754 million in the reported quarter compared with $592 million a year ago. As of Sept. 30, 2024, it had cash and cash equivalents of $2,664 million. The company had a long-term debt of $5,984 million at the end of the reported quarter, marking a debt-to-capitalization of 27.3%.

Meanwhile, energy infrastructure provider Kinder Morgan (KMI - Free Report) reported third-quarter adjusted earnings per share of 25 cents, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 27 cents. The weak bottom line was impacted due to lower contributions from the Products Pipelines and CO2 business segments. Moreover, KMI’s third-quarter DCF was $1.09 billion compared with $1.09 billion a year ago.

As of Sept. 30, 2024, Kinder Morgan reported $108 million in cash and cash equivalents. Its long-term debt amounted to $29.8 billion at the quarter-end. For the full year 2024, KMI anticipates a DCF of $5 billion and an adjusted EBITDA of $8.16 billion, each indicating 8% growth from the previous year’s reported figures.

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