HOUSTON (Reuters) - Oilfield services company Halliburton Co <HAL.N> said on Monday that quarterly net profit rose 5 percent, helped by growth in its Eastern Hemisphere business and a lower tax rate.
North American profits at Halliburton and other companies have suffered from a slowdown in drilling in Canada and falling prices in the United States in pressure pumping, a service used to increase oil and natural gas production in hard-to-reach areas.
And last year, Halliburton announced a push to expand its business in regions like the Middle East and Asia, where markets are more profitable and growing faster.
Fourth-quarter net income increased to $690 million, or 75 cents per share, from $658 million, or 64 cents per share, a year earlier.
The latest results included an after-tax charge of $22 million to write down the value of an oil and gas property in Bangladesh and $8 million in executive severance expenses, said the company, which has headquarters in Houston and Dubai.
Halliburton's results topped analysts expectations for a profit of 69 cents, according to Reuters Estimates, which calculated that the company had earned 77 cents a share on a comparable basis.
The company said it had benefited from a lower tax rate as increased international profits allowed it to recognize additional foreign tax credits.
Revenue rose 19 percent to $4.2 billion, topping analysts' expectations of $4.05 billion.
Analyst Dan Pickering of research firm and investment bank Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co said in an e-mail that Halliburton's revenue was stronger than expected, helped by its Middle Eastern business.
He characterized the company's North American results as "weakish," a trend seen in other oilfield service companies including Schlumberger Ltd <SLB.N>.
Operating income for the company's completion and production unit fell 4 percent to $571 million, hit by higher costs and pricing weakness for some of its services in the United States. Revenue rose to $2.29 billion from $1.94 billion.
In the drilling and evaluation unit, operating income rose 5 percent to $403 million, while revenue rose to $1.89 billion from $1.57 billion.
"Our international growth is providing the strength to offset the challenging North American market, with over 55 percent of our fourth-quarter revenue now coming from outside of North America," Chief Executive Dave Lesar said in a statement.
Revenue in North America rose 12 percent to $1.87 billion, while operating income fell to $497 million from $535 million.
In the Middle East and Asia, revenue soared 30 percent to $762 million, and operating income rose 25 percent to $172 million.
(Reporting by Anna Driver; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)
