RPC (RES) 2026년 3분기 실적 발표 콘퍼런스 콜: 마진 확대 및 7,450만 달러 손상차손

핵심 요약

• RPC(NYSE: RES)는 상대적으로 둔화된 완공(completion) 활동에도 불구하고 2026년 3분기 매출이 전분기 대비 1% 증가한 4억 6,800만 달러를 기록했다고 발표했다.
• 조정 EBITDA는 2분기 6,600만 달러에서 7,150만 달러로 증가했으며, 조정 EBITDA 마진은 100bp 확대된 15.3%를 기록했다.
• 조정 희석 EPS는 0.10달러를 기록했다. 주당 조정 항목은 총 0.30달러로, 주로 핀테일 와이어라인(Pintail Wireline) 관련 7,450만 달러의 비현금성 손상차손과 인수 관련 고용 비용을 반영했다.
• 코일드 튜빙(Coiled Tubing) 매출은 전분기 대비 20% 증가했고, 스너빙(Snubbing)은 12%, 산처리를 포함한 압력 펌핑(Pressure Pumping)은 3% 증가했다. 반면 와이어라인(Wireline) 매출은 8% 감소했다.
• 영업활동 현금흐름은 4,100만 달러였다. 4,000만 달러의 자본적 지출(CAPEX) 후 잉여현금흐름(FCF)은 2,500만 달러의 운전자본 증가 영향 등으로 100만 달러를 기록했다.
• 경영진은 일반적인 연말 계절성이 4분기 실적에 영향을 미칠 것으로 예상하지만 2027년에 대해서는 긍정적으로 전망하고 있으며, 추가 압력 펌핑 설비를 재가동하기 전에 가격 인상과 확고한 고객 약정이 선행되어야 한다고 강조했다.

주요 재무 데이터

이번 손상차손으로 향후 분기당 감가상각비 및 무형자산상각비가 약 300만 달러 감소할 것으로 예상된다. RPC는 주당 0.04달러의 정기 분기 배당금을 유지했으며, 연간 누적 배당금 지급액은 총 2,700만 달러다.

사업 및 영업 실적

압력 펌핑은 3분기 매출의 30.8%를 차지하며 RPC의 가장 큰 서비스 부문을 기록했고, 다운홀 툴(24.6%), 와이어라인(17.5%), 코일드 튜빙(10.4%), 시멘팅(5.7%), 렌탈 툴(3.8%)이 뒤를 이었다. 이들 사업 부문은 전체 매출의 93%를 합산 창출했다.

코일드 튜빙 매출은 유리한 작업 및 장비 조합에 힘입어 전 지역에서 전분기 대비 20% 증가했으나, 경영진은 이러한 조합이 지속적으로 재현되기는 어려울 수 있다고 밝혔다. RPC는 기존 장비 업그레이드의 일환으로 세 번째 2 7/8인치 릴 트레일러를 인도받았으며, 유사한 업그레이드가 가능한 장비 2대를 추가로 보유하고 있다.

스너빙 매출은 12% 증가했다. 2분기 중 가동을 시작한 대구경 스너빙 장비는 가동 후 첫 분기 영업을 완료했다. 해당 장비의 동굴 저장소 검사 작업은 수년간의 가시성을 확보하고 있으나 2분기와 3분기에 가장 활발하게 가동될 것으로 예상된다.

다운홀 툴 매출은 수 분기 동안의 강세 이후 인양(fishing) 작업이 감소하면서 2% 줄었다. 핵심 제품과 로키산맥, 북동부, 남동부 및 해외 지역에서는 성장이 지속되었다. 금속 대 금속 파워 섹션인 MetalMax의 도입이 확대되어 일부 초기 도입 지역에서는 작업의 절반 이상에 이를 적용하고 있다. 또한 RPC는 바켄(Bakken) 및 먼트니(Montney) 지층에서 다운홀 툴 심도 신기록을 달성했다고 발표했다.

와이어라인 매출은 8% 감소했다. 핀테일의 EBITDA 마진은 5% 안팎 수준에 머물렀으며, 지속적인 가격 약세와 비용 상승으로 해당 사업에 대한 경영진의 장기 수익 기대치가 낮아지면서 7,450만 달러의 손상차손이 발생했다.

산처리를 포함한 압력 펌핑 매출은 가격의 소폭 상승이 펌프 가동 시간의 미세한 감소로 일부 상쇄되면서 3% 증가했다. 고객 측의 지연과 제3자 물류 문제로 인해 비가동 시간(nonproductive time)이 발생했다. 경영진은 가스 연소 장비의 가동률이 높게 유지되고 있으나, 유휴 설비를 재가동하기 전에 수익성이 먼저 개선되어야 한다고 언급했다.

경영진 가이던스

RPC는 2026년 자본적 지출(CAPEX)을 1억 5,500만 달러에서 1억 7,500만 달러로 예상하고 있다. 기존 2026년으로 예정되었던 일부 장비 인도가 2027년으로 이월되었다. 추가 지연이 없다고 가정할 때 경영진은 현재 2027년 자본적 지출이 2026년과 유사할 것으로 전망하고 있다.

경영진은 일반적인 연말 계절성이 4분기 여러 서비스 부문에 영향을 미칠 것으로 예상하지만, 현재 고객 일정을 고려할 때 연휴 기간의 둔화 폭은 최근 몇 년에 비해 덜 심각할 수 있다고 밝혔다. 고객 일정은 여전히 가변적이다.

2027년에 대해 경영진은 전망을 '순긍정적(net positive)'이라고 설명하며 탐사 및 생산(E&P) 업체들이 원자재 가격에 긍정적인 자극을 받는 것으로 보인다고 언급했다. 그러나 회사는 전면적인 성장 가속화를 관측하지 못하고 있으며 구체적인 매출이나 이익 가이던스는 제시하지 않았다.

리스크 및 주요 관전 포인트

• 와이어라인 부문의 지속적인 가격 약세와 비용 압박으로 핀테일의 예상 장기 이익 기여도가 줄어들었다.
• 노동력 확보가 어려워지면서 비용에 영향을 미치고 있으나, 경영진은 이 문제가 과거 노동 시장이 어려웠던 시기보다 실질적으로 더 악화되지는 않았다고 설명했다.
• 인플레이션, 수요 우려 및 지정학적 상황 변화가 E&P 활동의 불확실성을 지속적으로 유발하고 있다.
• 일반적인 연휴 계절성으로 인해 4분기 활동이 감소할 수 있으며, 고객 일정은 변동될 가능성이 있다.
• 일부 서비스 부문은 장비 재투자를 정당화하기 위해 추가적인 가격 개선이 필요하다.
• 잉여현금흐름은 전략적 재고 매입, 부품 부족, 고객 대금 회수 및 외상매입금 지급 시점의 영향으로 제약을 받았다.

애널리스트 Q&A 하이라이트

2027년에 대한 초기 징후를 묻는 질문에 경영진은 긍정적으로 전망하면서도 불확실성이 지속되고 있음을 인정했다. 4분기 둔화세가 완만하다면 2027년 초에 활동이 더 신속하게 재개될 수 있다고 덧붙였다.

데이터 센터 건설 등 타 산업과의 인력 경쟁에 대해 경영진은 인력 수급 둔화와 비용 상승이 일정 부분 존재함을 확인했으나, 이를 이례적으로 심각한 차질이라기보다 업계에서 반복적으로 나타나는 과제로 평가했다.

유휴 압력 펌핑 장비와 관련해 경영진은 추가 설비에 대한 수요가 존재할 수 있지만 가격이 크게 상승해야 할 것이라고 밝혔다. 또한 RPC는 다른 작업 조를 재가동하기 전에 확고한 고객 약정이 필요하며, 현재 장비를 현장에 복귀시키기 위해 적극적으로 움직이지는 않고 있다.

실적 발표 컨퍼런스 콜 전문

전체 실적 발표 컨퍼런스 콜 녹취록

경영진 발표

Operator

Good morning, and thank you for joining us for RPC Inc.'s Third Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. Today's call will be hosted by Ben Palmer, President and CEO; and Mike Schmidt, Chief Financial Officer. [Operator Instructions]

I would like to advise everyone that this conference call is being recorded.

I will now turn the call over to Mr. Schmidt.

Michael Schmit

Thank you, and good morning. Before we begin, I want to remind you that some of the statements that will be made on this call could be forward-looking in nature and reflect a number of known and unknown risks. Please refer to our press release issued today, along with our 10-K and other public filings that outline those risks, all of which can be found on RPC's website at www.rpc.net.

In today's earnings release and conference call, we'll be referring to several non-GAAP measures of operating performance and liquidity. We believe these non-GAAP measures allow us to compare performance consistently over various periods. Our press release and our website contain reconciliations of these non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures.

I'll now turn the call over to our President and CEO, Ben Palmer.

Ben Palmer

Thanks, Mike, and thank you for joining our call this morning. Today, we will talk about our third quarter results and provide you with a few operational highlights. While completion activity levels remained relatively subdued this quarter, RPC overall generated sequential revenue growth and particularly strong margin expansion driven by solid operational execution, strong cost leverage in several product lines, technology adoption and contributions from targeted investments.

Within Technical Services, Cudd Pressure Control's largest service line, Coiled Tubing, was up 20% sequentially. Coiled tubing revenue increased across all districts. Results during the quarter benefited from exceptionally strong job and equipment mix, which will be challenging to consistently replicate. We have taken delivery of the third 2 7/8-inch reel trailer. Recall, this is an upgrade to an existing unit and not an incremental unit.

We now have 2 additional units that are capable of a 2 7/8-inch reel-replacement upgrade. These large-diameter units continue to generate attractive utilization and support our strategy of investing in areas where we see strong full-cycle returns.

Cudd Pressure Control snubbing revenues were up 12% sequentially. The big bore snubbing unit, which went into service during the second quarter, saw its first full quarter of work during the third quarter. The unit is designed for cavern storage inspections, which is regulatory driven. This work has multiyear visibility, but likely has the strongest seasonality in the second and third quarter of each year.

Also within Technical Services, Thru Tubing Solutions downhole tools revenues decreased 2% sequentially, primarily on lower fishing activity after several strong quarters. We continue to experience growth in our core product offerings, resulting in growth in our Rocky Mountain, Northeast, Southeast and foreign districts. Thru Tubing Solutions is a market leader in downhole completion tools with a portfolio of products supported by proprietary technologies in our patent portfolio.

Our R&D team has developed a variety of enhanced tools and products that further our market leadership. Thru Tubing Solutions has introduced new sizes of MetalMax, its metal-on-metal power section, increasing availability and adoption across districts. Some of our early adopter districts have MetalMax utilized on more than half of their jobs.

MetalMax's performance and design characteristics are enabling entry into new markets and applications. The product reduces the number of trips an operator has to make out of hole, reducing nonproductive time and is capable of running in harsher conditions than traditional power sections. Our Thru Tubing Solutions team is pushing the limits with operators. During the quarter, our downhole tools set new depth records in the Bakken and Montney formations.

These results further validate the performance advantages of our technology portfolio and support continued market share gains. Overall, our downhole tools business is benefiting from more complex and longer laterals that are well suited for our technology solutions.

Turning to Wireline, revenues declined 8% sequentially. Pintail's EBITDA margins have consistently been in the mid-single-digit range for the last few quarters. While Pintail has maintained its leading Permian market position, persistent pricing weakness combined with increased cost pressures have reduced our initial long-term earnings expectations for this business.

Therefore, during the quarter, we recorded noncash impairment charges of $74.5 million related to Pintail Wireline. Cudd Energy Services' Pressure Pumping revenues, including acid, increased 3% sequentially. Pressure Pumping revenues benefited from slightly improved pricing but was offset by slightly lower pump hours. Pump hours were modestly impacted by non-Cudd nonproductive time, including customer delays, mostly related to third-party logistics issues.

Job mix was relatively consistent with the prior quarter. Both revenue and cost per pump hour increased marginally on a sequential basis. Our gas-burning Pressure Pumping equipment is well utilized with white space created by external factors. Industry spare capacity appears meaningfully lower than it was several quarters ago. We expect to maintain our current working fleets, and we'll wait for returns to further improve before reactivating equipment.

We have seen growing customer interest in our enhanced production techniques on existing wells. We were able to generate these revenues with non-gas-burning equipment and smaller crews. While customer schedules currently indicate holiday impacts may be somewhat less severe than the last several years, we still expect normal year-end seasonality to affect activity levels across many of our service lines and for customer schedules to remain fluid up until the holidays.

Macro volatility has persisted with inflation pressures occurring in multiple areas. E&P operators as a whole appear to be cautiously optimistic regarding commodity prices, although concerns around demand, inflation and geopolitical developments continue to create uncertainty. Overall, the oilfield service market is more constructive, but certain service lines need additional pricing improvements to justify reinvestment. We will continue prioritizing returns and focus on controlling factors we can influence.

With that, Mike will now discuss the quarter's financial results.

Michael Schmit

Thanks, Ben. Our third quarter financial results with sequential comparisons to the second quarter of 2026 are as follows: Revenues increased 1% to $468 million. Breaking down our operating segments, Technical Services, which represented 95% of our total third quarter revenues, were up 1%. Support Services, which represented 5% of revenues, were up 3%.

The following is a breakdown of our third quarter revenues for our largest service lines. Pressure Pumping, 30.8%; Downhole Tools, 24.6%; Wireline, 17.5%; Coiled Tubing, 10.4%; Cementing, 5.7%; Rental Tools, 3.8%. Together, these service lines accounted for 93% of our total revenues. Cost of revenues, excluding depreciation and amortization, was $350 million compared to $346 million in the previous quarter.

SG&A expenses were $51 million, largely unchanged from the $52 million in the prior quarter. Depreciation and amortization was $43 million, similar to the previous quarter. The impairment reduces future depreciation and amortization by approximately $3 million per quarter. The effective tax benefit rate was 19.2% during the quarter. Adjusted diluted EPS was $0.10 in the third quarter.

Adjustments totaled $0.30 per share and related to the impairment charges and acquisition-related employment costs. Adjusted EBITDA was $71.5 million, up from $66 million in the prior quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin increased 100 basis points sequentially to 15.3%.

Several of our service lines experienced particularly strong activity during the quarter, and we expect normal seasonal patterns to potentially impact results as we move into the fourth quarter. Net cash provided by operating activities during the quarter was $41 million, and after CapEx of $40 million, free cash flow was $1 million. Free cash flow was impacted by working capital increasing $25 million during the quarter, primarily driven by strategic inventory purchases, including key components in short supply, as well as the timing of customer collections and vendor payments.

At quarter end, we had approximately $177 million in cash, a $30 million note payable and no borrowings on our $100 million revolving credit facility. Our regular cash dividend remains unchanged at $0.04 per share. Dividend payments totaled $27 million year-to-date. We expect 2026 capital expenditures in the range of $155 million to $175 million.

Certain equipment deliveries previously anticipated for 2026 are now expected in 2027, although additional timing changes remain possible. Assuming additional slippage does not occur, we currently expect 2027 CapEx to be similar to 2026. As always, we will evaluate CapEx based on returns and adjust spending based on our opportunities.

I'll now turn it back over to Ben for some closing remarks.

Ben Palmer

Thanks, Mike. While we remain cautious regarding the pace of broader industry improvement and the impact of normal year-end seasonality, we believe RPC is well positioned with a diverse portfolio of businesses, differentiated technologies, a strong balance sheet and the financial flexibility to pursue attractive opportunities while continuing to generate cash and deliver strong full-cycle returns.

I want to thank all of our employees who put in tremendous work to provide high levels of service and value to our customers. Thank you for joining us this morning.

And at this time, we're happy to address any questions.

Operator

[Operator Instructions] Your first question comes from the line of Don Crist with Johnson Rice.

질의응답

Donald Crist

I wanted to ask about early '27 indications. We're hearing that some of the larger companies are looking to add more services as they, kind of, go into '27. I know most of your services outside of Pressure Pumping are in that realm. Just any, kind of, indication as to what '27 looks like just on an early look today?

Ben Palmer

Don, I appreciate you being on. Early '27, I would say that we are optimistic. As we indicated, we think the E&Ps, both the large and the small, are encouraged by commodity prices. And so we're feeling pretty good about next year. I would say net positive. Obviously, there's always uncertainty. We're not seeing full steam ahead, but clearly, we're set up and positioned and expect things.

Hopefully, the fourth quarter slowdown is going to be a little bit more muted than it has been in some of the past few years. And hopefully, we'll get off to a good start early next year. Oftentimes, when it slows down a lot in the fourth quarter, it takes a while to get cranked back up.

So maybe that slowdown will be a little more muted, and we can get the year started off pretty strongly and capture some of that enthusiasm that we think is out there that you're referring to.

Donald Crist

I appreciate that color. And you touched on this in the press release, but I wanted to ask about labor. We're hearing some pretty strong reports that data center construction and other industries are pulling away from the oilfield. And just wanted to know if you're experiencing any of that and seeing any inflation on the labor side as data centers ramp up.

Michael Schmit

Don, this is Mike. Yes, I think labor is tightening up a little bit and a lot of reasons for that. And we have -- it does impact cost and availabilities, which -- so I think some of the things you're hearing is probably consistent with some of the things we're seeing, too.

Ben Palmer

And I would say, Don, this is Ben, that that we always, over the years, have had competition for labor. So I wouldn't suggest or would say that this particular instance, it's not particularly more difficult than it has been in other past difficult times. So it's just something we deal with.

It's something we actually always have to deal with time to time. It just -- there's different reasons why there's -- labor can be difficult to attain and retain, but we are rocking along okay, but that is something that we do hear anecdotes about.

Donald Crist

Okay. And just the last one for me. You have some spare equipment sitting on the sidelines and some cash to refurbish it if you need to. Any thoughts as to reactivating another crew as we move into '27? Is the demand there?

Ben Palmer

If our additional capacity were ready to go tomorrow, there's a likelihood we could find a place for it to work, but we need pricing to move up quite a bit. We need to have a compelling reason. We would need to have some sort of firm commitment from a customer to be able to move in that direction.

So we're going to keep our additional capacity on the sideline at this point in time. We're doing some -- a little bit of prep behind the scenes over time, but we're not moving aggressively forward to try to reactivate more equipment at this time.

Operator

We have reached the end of the Q&A session. I will now turn the call back to Mr. Ben Palmer for closing remarks.

Ben Palmer

Well, appreciate you listening in this morning, and we're looking forward to a good 2027, and we appreciate you and hope you have a good rest of the day.

Operator

This concludes today's call. A reminder that the conference call will be replayed on www.rpc.net within 2 hours following the completion of the call. Thank you for attending. You may now disconnect.