Energy services provider Hunting narrowed its losses during the course of 2017, causing shares to rise over 3 percent on Wednesday morning.
The group reported a loss of $25.4 million for the year to the end of December, a narrower loss than the $170.7 million loss seen in 2016, after a strong performance by its logging arm Hunting Titan. The division reported units of production above those of levels seen in 2014, alongside strong sales of its H-1 perforating system were solid.
Revenue rose to $722.9 million from $455.8 million the year before, with the group reported an underlying profit before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of $55.4 million against a loss of $48.9 million in 2016.
Jim Johnson, Hunting Chief Executive, said the Group’s results were “supported by an exceptional performance by Hunting Titan, leading to Hunting reporting a return to underlying profit for the year as a whole.”
“Onshore drilling and completion activity in the US shale basins has led the strong recovery for those businesses within Hunting focused on this market. Elsewhere across the Group, cost cutting initiatives and general market stability have helped narrow losses.
“We are pleased to have completed the process of exiting our suspension period bank covenants. While the Company is not proposing a dividend in respect of the 2017 financial year, shareholder distributions will be considered, subject to the Group’s current performance being sustained.”
Shares in Hunting (LON:HTG) are currently up 3.62 percent at 630.50 (0953GMT).