Shares of Schlumberger Ltd. SLB fell 0.7% in premarket trading Friday, after the oil services company reported first-quarter profit and revenue that rose above expectations but cash flow from operations that was less than half what was forecast. Net income increased to $934 million, or 65 cents a share, from $510 million, or 36 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share of 63 cents topped the FactSet consensus of 60 cents. Revenue grew 29.8% to $7.74 billion, above the FactSet consensus of $7.44 billion, with growth surpassing rig-count growth in both North America and internationally. Cash flow from operations rose to $330 million from $131 million, but was below the FactSet consensus of $710.3 million. Chief Executive Olivier Le Peuch said cash flow from operations reflects the ” seasonal first-quarter buildup of working capital that will support our anticipated growth for the year and the payment of our annual incentives.” The stock has slipped 2.8% year to date through Thursday, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR exchange-traded fund XLE has lost 2.3% and the S&P 500 SPX has gained 7.6%.
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