Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (DO - Analyst Report) reported second-quarter 2015 adjusted earnings of 66 cents per share that comfortably surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 48 cents and also increased from the year-earlier earnings of 65 cents.

Total revenue in the quarter decreased 8.4% year over year to $634.0 million. However, the top line came in above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $605.0 million.

Dividend Story

Diamond Offshore declared regular quarterly dividend of 12.5 cents per share (50 cents per share annualized). The dividend will be paid on Sep 1, 2015 to shareholders on record as of Aug 14.

Operational Performance

In the second quarter, revenues from the Contract Drilling segment fell 4.9% year over year to approximately $617.4 million.

Ultra-Deepwater floaters recorded an average dayrate of $483,000 during the quarter, up from $435,000 in the year-earlier quarter. Deepwater floaters realized an average dayrate of $451,000 compared with $429,000 in the year-ago quarter. Mid-water floaters recorded an average dayrate of $278,000, up from $272,000 in the prior-year quarter. Jackup rig dayrates averaged $83,000, significantly down from $98,000 in the second quarter of 2014.

Rig utilization for Ultra-Deepwater floaters increased to 63% from 51% in the year-ago quarter. Utilization of Deepwater floaters also grew to 63% from 51% a year ago. Mid-water category rig utilization was 32% as against 68% in the comparable quarter last year, while jackup rig utilization decreased to 53% from 74%.

Financials

As of Jun 30, 2015, Diamond Offshore had approximately $95.9 million in cash and cash equivalents, while long-term debt totaled $1,994.6 million.

Zacks Rank

Diamond Offshore currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks from the same space are Linn Energy, LLC (LINE - Snapshot Report), Holly Energy Partners L.P. (HEP - Snapshot Report) and Valero Energy Partners, L.P. (VLP - Snapshot Report). Each of these stocks sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).