Halliburton Beats Profit, Sales Forecasts; Lifts Dividend

Halliburton reported Monday third-quarter profit and sales that beat expectations, helped by strength in its North America and Latin America operations. The oil services company also increased its quarterly dividend by 20% to 18 cents a share. For the quarter ended Sept. 30, net earnings, including discontinued operations, were $1.2 billion, or $1.41 a share, up from $706 million, or 79 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted per-share earnings were $1.19, compared with the FactSet consensus analyst estimate of $1.10. Revenue rose 8% over last year to $8.7 billion, topping analyst forecasts of $8.53 billion. The new dividend will be payable on Dec. 26 to shareholders of record on Dec. 5. Halliburton shares edged up 0.3% in premarket trade. The stock has gained 3.7% year to date through Friday, compared with a 2.1% rise in the S&P 500.