Patterson-UTI Energy Q3 Profit Plummets - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Patterson-UTI Energy Inc. (PTEN), an onshore contract drilling services provider, Thursday reported a decline in its third quarter earnings to $16 million or $0.11 per share from $74.4 million or $0.51 per share last year. The latest quarter results included a pretax non-cash charge of $77.9 million. On average, 27 analysts polled by Thomson-Reuters estimated the company's earnings to be $0.47 for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items. Quarterly revenues rose to $846 million from $731 million a year ago. Analysts expected revenue of $834.95 million for the quarter. The company proposed a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, to be paid on December 24, to holders of record as of December 10.