Global energy technology company SLB has posted a six percent rise in net income for 2024, despite a drop for the fourth quarter. The company said in its report that its net income for the year landed at $4.46 billion. For the fourth quarter, the company’s net income was at $1.1 billion, eight percent below Q3 and two percent below the corresponding 2023 quarter.
Fourth-quarter revenue was $9.28 billion, up one percent over Q3 and three percent year on year. Full-year revenue landed at $36.29 billion, 10 percent above 2023.
The company reported fourth-quarter earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of $2.38 billion, up two percent sequentially and five percent year on year. SLB said its 2024 EBITDA landed at $9.07 billion increasing 12 percent year on year.
“2024 was a strong year for SLB as we successfully navigated evolving market conditions to deliver revenue and EBITDA growth, margin expansion, and solid free cash flow”, Olivier Le Peuch, SLB Chief Executive Officer, said.
“This performance was led by the Middle East and Asia and Europe and Africa, which grew 18 percent and 13 percent, respectively. The Middle East and Asia achieved record revenues, while growth in Europe and Africa was bolstered by the acquired Aker subsea business”, he said.
Le Peuch said upstream investment growth will remain subdued in the short term due to global oversupply. However, SLB expects the oil supply imbalance to abate gradually.
“Global economic growth and a heightened focus on energy security, coupled with rising energy demand from AI and data centers will support the investment outlook for the oil and gas industry throughout the rest of the decade”, he said.
The company’s board of directors approved a 3.6 percent increase to its quarterly dividend. “Additionally, as we believe our stock is undervalued relative to the strength of our business, we entered into accelerated share repurchase transactions to repurchase $2.3 billion of our company’s common stock. This positions us to increase total return to shareholders from $3.3 billion in 2024 to a minimum of $4 billion in 2025″, Le Peuch said.
Source: By Paul Anderson Rigzone.com