Wood Group PLC (LON:WG.) shares were steady in early trade after good and bad news statements cancelled each other out.
The ‘good’ first and the landing of a US$700mln a field services contract with Tengizchevroil in Kazakhstan.
This was tempered by the interim results, which revealed the company is still hostage to the depressed oil price.
As a major supplier to the industry its unsurprising its revenues (down 17% at US$2.6bn) and its earnings (off 26% at US$166mln) have taken a battering.
Against this backdrop, and with debts of US$351mln, some will be a little surprise Wood Group managed to hike the dividend 10% to 10.8 cents per share.
The payment is perhaps echoes a sense of cautious optimism detected in the comments of chief executive Robin Watson.
“Looking further ahead, we see early indications of modest recovery in some areas and believe our customer relationships, geographic footprint, strong financial footing and relentless focus on delivering value through our asset life cycle services and specialist technical solutions, position us well,” he told investors.
At 8.40am, the shares were changing hands for 726p, valuing the business at £2.77bn.