Historically, tumultuous times offer some of
the best opportunities to buy stocks, and the market's
recent mess surely qualifies. There are few companies that
are growing stronger today, but many investors think
much-maligned energy services company
Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) is one of them.
In our
Motley Fool CAPScommunity, nearly 95% of the 2,871
investors rating the company are bullish, so there's no
shortage of reasons why Halliburton will thrive, three of
which I've highlighted below.
But here at The Motley Fool, we're all for looking at both
the good and bad sides of an investment. Once you're done
with this article, you can read
the case against Halliburton, weigh in with your own
comments below, or rate Halliburton yourself
in
CAPS.
1. Still winning contracts
Despite a softer energy market that's materially
affected integrated energy giants like
Chevron (NYSE: CVX) and
ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP), many CAPS members
still see lots of opportunity in the energy sector, thanks to
the global oil and gas demand outlook. Halliburton is still
filling the pipeline and has recently
scored new contractswith
Petrobras (NYSE: PBR),
Royal Dutch Shell , and
Talisman Energy , and has also renewed a
three-year deal with
BP (NYSE: BP).
2. Business bottoming out
For the first time since last year, Halliburton pulled
in a sequential revenue gain, rising 3% in the third quarter
over the second. Halliburton's CEO said the company is seeing
signs that margins are bottoming and sees other
signs of improvement, giving many CAPS members confidence
that the sector is back on the upswing and the company has
room to grow.
3. International strength
Halliburton has been seeing strength in international
markets where it now does a large portion of it business -- a
regional diversity trend that should also be
beneficial for otherslike
Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB) and drillers like
Noble (NYSE: NE). Regions like the Middle
East and Russia have seen strong activity, and Halliburton
expects expansion and new contracts in Brazil to further its
long-term growth
prospects.  Â
To see details of what CAPS members
are saying
nowabout Halliburton, just click on over to
Motley Fool CAPSand have a look, or add your thoughts
directly to this story in the comments box below.
This article was originally published as
3 Reasons to Buy Halliburton Todayon
Fool.com
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