Helmerich & Payne, Inc.

Third-quarter revenue was over $1 billion, up 11% sequentially. Adjusted EBITDA was $236 million. Reported net profit was $0.74 per diluted share; excluding the Utica Square sale and other select items, EPS was a loss of $0.11 per share. Gross capital expenditures were $70 million, and free cash flow was $98 million. North America Solutions averaged 142 rigs and generated $241 million of direct margin, with direct margin of $18.7 thousand per day, up over $1 thousand sequentially. International Solutions direct margin was $31 million; offshore direct margin was $29 million. For Q4, North America Solutions direct margin is guided to $245 million-$255 million on 145-151 rigs; International Solutions is guided to $25 million-$45 million; offshore direct margin is guided to $26 million-$30 million. Full-year North America rig count guidance was raised to 140-144, offshore full-year direct margin guidance was raised to $113 million-$117 million, CapEx is expected to stay within $270 million-$310 million, and cash tax payments are now expected to be $150 million-$180 million.

Trey Adams said the quarter showed strength across the company’s diversified portfolio, led by the Lower 48, with Latin America and offshore also contributing and the Middle East remaining resilient despite conflict-related disruption. He framed the environment as improving for 2027, saying customer conversations are constructive, super-spec utilization is already around 95%, and the company is seeing tightening supply across North America, Argentina, geothermal, and parts of the Middle East. He also emphasized that H&P is entering an enterprise optimization phase aimed at simplifying the business, lifting profitability, and supporting a multiyear growth cycle.

Todd Scruggs highlighted the hard numbers: more than $1 billion of quarterly revenue, $236 million of adjusted EBITDA, $98 million of free cash flow, and $70 million of gross CapEx. He said the company’s top financial priority is getting net debt to EBITDA to 1 turn, noting the $400 million term loan was paid off ahead of schedule and the remaining focus is the $350 million bond due at the end of 2027. He outlined cost actions that are expected to reduce corporate costs by an annualized $40 million by the end of 2027 and said asset sales targeted by fiscal 2027 could exceed $160 million. He also described a capital framework that keeps the dividend, targets about $250 million annually for maintenance CapEx, and about $50 million per year for sustaining CapEx, while preserving flexibility for buybacks and growth once deleveraging is achieved.

Analysts focused on what underpins the stronger Q4 guide, how North America margins should trend with reactivations and pricing, and whether the current activity level can hold into 2027. Management said the Q4 step-up is driven by activity growth across all three segments, with North America benefiting from continued rig additions, international from Argentina and Middle East recovery, and offshore from steady, ratable performance. On North America margins, management said performance bonuses are lumpy and more than half of rigs are on performance-based contracts; reactivation costs matter but were a smaller piece of the margin swing. Questions on Saudi Arabia and Argentina drew guidance that Saudi is stable at 22 rigs for now, while Argentina could reach 15 rigs with additional U.S. exports over the next 6 to 8 months, with margins there broadly in line with current international economics.