$HAL Beats the Street, But Profits Fall 26%

“HOUSTON (AP) — Halliburton’s net income for the fourth quarter declined 26 percent on pricing pressures in the North American market and one time charges from the Deepwater Horizon disaster, as well as acquisitions.

Yet adjusted results beat Wall Street expectations, and shares rose 4 percent before the opening bell Friday.

The oilfield services company earned $669 million, or 72 cents per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31. That’s down from $906 million, or 98 cents per share, a year ago.

Removing one-time charges and gains, earnings from continuing operations were 67 cents per share.

Revenue increased 3 percent to $7.29 billion from $7.06 billion, bolstered by international growth — particularly in the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. The company said that its quarterly revenue performance was the highest in its history.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected earnings of 61 cents per share on revenue of $7.06 billion….”

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