Schlumberger Sees Double-Digit Growth
Reuters
Tuesday, June 15, 2004; 10:29 AM
washingtonpost.com
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Schlumberger Ltd. , the world's largest energy services company, expects earnings to grow at double-digit rates through the end of this decade, fueled by soaring oil and gas demand and increased drilling in emerging energy hubs such as Russia, the company said Tuesday.
Schlumberger, which noted this earnings growth may ebb and flow with industry cycles, said revenue at its Schlumberger Information Systems division should double by 2010.
The company, hosting an investor conference in Connecticut, said it also seeks an after-tax return on sales of 15 percent, including results from its WesternGeco seismic exploration joint venture with Baker Hughes Inc. .
The company, which has spent the past year and a half divesting assets outside of its core energy businesses, also intends to achieve return on capital employed in the upper teens on a percentage basis.
Schlumberger, however, said it does not expect to raise its quarterly dividend until earnings rise to a "higher plateau." Any excess cash after internal investments and acquisitions would be applied to stock buybacks, the company said. |
