Halliburton Profit Beats as Costs Fall

Halliburton, the world's No.2 oilfield services provider, reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit as deep cost cuts helped offset the impact of a drop in drilling activity.

The company earned 31 cents per share on an adjusted basis, higher than analysts' average estimate of 27 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

However, total revenue fell nearly 36 percent to $5.58 billion, missing analysts' estimate of $5.64 billion.

Revenue nearly halved in North America in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, mainly due to weak drilling activity and pricing. The region accounts for nearly 50 percent of the company's revenue.

Net loss attributable to the company was $54 million, or 6 cents per share, in the third quarter, compared with a profit of $1.20 billion, or $1.41 per share, hurt mainly by charges related to asset write-offs and severance costs.

"We are pleased with our third-quarter results, especially the resilience of our international business, where we outperformed our largest peer on a sequential and year-over-year basis for both revenue and margins," President Jeff Miller said.

(Reporting by Sneha Banerjee and Amrutha Gayathri in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)