Offshore, LNG buoy Baker Hughes in third quarter – Houston Chronicle

Offshore work and liquefied natural gas projects helped to buoy Houston oil field service company Baker Hughes during the third quarter.

In an early Wednesday morning statement, Baker Hughes reported posting a $57 million profit for shareholders on nearly $5.9 billion of revenue during the third quarter. The figures were higher compared to the $13 million net income for shareholders on nearly $5.7 billion of revenue during the third quarter of 2018.

This years this quarter figures translated into earnings per share of 21 cents for stockholders, which were higher compared to the 3 cents per share during the same time period last year.

Baker Hughes nonetheless missed Wall Street expectations of $6.1 billion of revenue and earnings per share of 24 cents.

Shale Slump: Oil field service sector braces for more pain

The company's earnings report come at time when $50 per barrel crude oil prices have created a drilling slump in shale fields across the United States and Canada that has sent the rest of the oil field service sector hemorrhaging with losses.

In a statement, Baker Hughes CEO Lorenzo Simonelli said the company delivered a solid quarter based on contract wins from it turbomachinery and oilfield equipment divisions as well as improved margin from its oilfield services division.

Among the contract wins, Norwegian oil company Vr Energi tapped Baker Hughes to provide 16 underwater production systems in the Balder X field of the North Sea.

Venture Global LNG also awarded Baker Hughes a contract and granted a notice to proceed with construction for the Calcasieu Pass LNG export terminal in Louisiana.

A major oil company selected Baker Hughes as its sole artificial lift provider in the Permian Basin while Saudi Aramco signed a five-year contract with the Houston company for services in Saudi Arabia.

"Overall, we are very pleased with our execution as a team, and we believe Baker Hughes is firmly on the right path financially, operationally, and strategically, Simonelli said.

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With roots in Texas going back to 1907, Baker Hughes now employs more than 64,000 people in 120 nations. The company reported a $195 million profit on nearly $23 billion of revenue during 2018.

The earnings report comes roughly seven weeks after Boston industrial conglomerate General Electric reduce its ownership stake to below 40 percent, allowing Baker Hughes to become an independent company.

Seizing upon that momentum, Baker Hughes rolled out a new logo in early October, changed its stock ticker symbol to BKR and rebranded itself as an oilfield technology company.

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