The current debt levels of U.S. oilfield and drilling (OFS) companies
is unsustainable over the long term. According to Moody’s Investors
Service, OFS companies need a “substantial improvement in cash flow.”
"U.S.
oilfield services and drilling companies' high debt levels will
continue to constrain their credit quality in 2019 and beyond," said
Sreedhar Kona, a Moody's senior analyst. "The largest firms are
significantly better positioned to regain their credit strength next
year than the smaller ones, though the threat of balance sheet
restructuring will persist, particularly for the latter."
Smaller
and less diversified OFS companies face the most risk, while larger
firms such as Schlumberger and Halliburton stand to benefit the most
from an OFS recovery. Over the past 10 years OFS credit quality as a
sector weakened. The average debt to EBITDA ratio increased more than
4.5 times in 2017, states Moody’s.
“A decade ago,
earnings were growing more quickly than debt, but the reverse was true
between 2008 and 2014, then in 2015-16 cash flow shrank by more than
30%, with a consequent tripling in leverage,” concluded the release.
-Michael Miller, managing editor
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