I continue to love this deep sea drilling space but since fund inception in August, investors in this area have NOT been rewarded. Investors still seem to be of the mind that if crude drops to $65 business will falter, but once that mind set changes and people see this space is moving to a secular growth story versus cyclical these stocks should take off... I await that day. Atwood Oceanics is the smallest of the group of a very limited ways to get into this space, hence my surprise there has not been better price action.
- Offshore oilfield service provider Atwood Oceanics Inc. said Wednesday its fourth-quarter and fiscal 2007 profit surged on higher revenue to beat Wall Street expectations. Net income for the three months ended Sept. 30 rose to $54.1 million, or $1.69 per share, compared with $23.2 million, or 74 cents per share, during the same period a year earlier.
- Revenue increased to $121.6 million, from $81.8 million. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial forecast earnings of $1.43 per share on revenue of $116 million.
- For the full fiscal year, the company said net income increased to $139 million, or $4.37 per share, compared with $86.1 million, or $2.74 per share, the previous year. Revenue rose to $403 million from $276.6 million the prior year.
- Analysts predicted fiscal 2007 earnings of $4.19 per share on revenue of $393 million.
- Separately, the company said its Atwood Southern Cross drilling rig received a contract from Italian energy company Eni SpA AGIP to drill two wells, with options for two more, at a daily rate of $406,000. (wow)
