Upstream mileage varies

It’s not easy to separate the signal of software finances from the noise of service behemoths’ accounts. But a few gems (like the price paid for Petrel) are tucked away in Schlumberger’s Notes while Halliburton reports ‘record earnings’ from Landmark.

2002 produced a mixed bag of results for upstream service companies. For the majors, Halliburton and Schlumberger, upstream IT financials are somewhat masked by reporting from the behemoth’s other activities. However, results from the smaller software houses and patchy reporting from the major’s IT sectors suggests that software is a more robust business than construction or consulting.

Schlumberger

Schlumberger Oilfield Services Revenue for 2002 was $9.3 billion, 5% down from 2001. No specific on earnings from the Information Solutions unit – but a couple of interesting historical tid bits in the notes—Schlumberger paid $18 million cash for Inside Reality while the price paid for Petrel turns out to have been a modest $8 million cash plus $ 60 million in Schlumberger stock.

Halliburton

Energy Services Group revenue for 2002 was $ 6.8 billion - down 12% from 2001. Again, no hard numbers for the software sector—but Landmark’s yearly operating income increased over ‘100 percent compared to 2001’ and quarterly ‘over 150 percent sequentially on increased revenue, primarily in software-related sales’. Both the revenue and operating income results were the highest in any quarter in Landmark’s history.

Baker Hughes

Revenue for the year 2002 was $5,020 million, 2% down on 2001. Baker Hughes bought back and retired approximately 500,000 of its own shares during 4th qtr 2002.

Veritas

Veritas’ second quarter (ending 1/31/03) showed revenue stabilized at a ‘relatively healthy’ level considering the current market environment. During 2002, Veritas acquired Advanced Data Solutions for $8 million and bought back $9 million of its own stock.

Core Lab

Core Lab reported record quarterly revenues of over $ 100 million. Reservoir Management posted its most profitable quarter in over three years, the result of ‘refocusing on proprietary, integrated reservoir solutions’.

TGS-NOPEC

TGS-NOPEC posted net revenues for 2002 of $ 124 million—down 3% from 2001. The A2D subsidiary was declared ‘profitable for the year including the cost of goodwill amortization’.

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