Schlumberger said Thursday it earned $989 million, or 78 cents a share, in the third quarter, compared with $1.9 billion, or $1.49 a share, a year ago. Revenue reached $8.5 billion, down 33% from $12.6 billion a year ago. Revenue declined 6% quarter-on-quarter “driven by a continuing decline in rig activity and persistent pricing pressure throughout our global operations,” the company said. “The business environment deteriorated further in the third quarter.” Analysts polled by FactSet had expected the oil-field services company to earn 77 cents a share on sales of $8.5 billion. The company said it expects “challenging” conditions in the coming quarters and less business from its oil and gas clients. Shares of Schlumberger fell 0.9% in late trading Thursday after ending the regular session up 1.5%.
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