On 3rd July PFC announced that it was trading well ahead of expectations. Not surprisingly, sp jumped but has now fallen back pretty much to the same level as before the announcement.

While perhaps not as exciting as finding the next Cairn, remember that in the goldrush days, it was rarely the prospectors who made the money, but rather the suppliers of the spades and tents and stuff - e.g. Levis if memory serves me aright.

PFC has been under the cosh for quite a while as the chart shows, but is slowly clawing its way north again
arguably a reasonable sector to be in with a stronger crude price prevailing
in the past, i would have said this was the pick of the bunch, but now not sure, but nor do i know what alternative i would choose .... assuredly NOT LAM

StockMarketWire.com
Petrofac said an investigation into the company by the UK Serious Fraud Office would continue to involve interviews with directors of the company, including its chairman, as well as employees.

The company said it would continue to provide relevant documents to the SFO.

'No further comment will be made on the basis that this may prejudice an ongoing investigation,' the company said.

'We also do not anticipate providing further updates on this matter.'

'Since the events of last year the board and management have worked together to ensure safe and reliable delivery for clients and secure new orders, whilst at the same time responding as constructively as possible to the SFO investigation.'

Morgan Stanley today downgrades its investment rating on Petrofac Ltd (LON:PFC) to underweight (from equal weight) and left its price target at 475p.

FULL YEAR RESULTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2017
· Business performance net profit (1) up 7% to US$343 million

· Reported net loss of US$29 million post impairments and exceptional items of US$372 million

· New order intake (2) of US$5.2 billion; backlog (3) of US$10.2 billion

· Net debt of US$0.6 billion reflecting strong capital management

· Full year dividend of 38.0 cents per share in line with dividend policy

http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5874560

J P Morgan comment:
"Petrofac delivered a good set of underlying results, despite an 11% revenue miss in 2H 17. PFC beat implied company derived 2H 17 EBITDA by 9% (+10% vs. JPMe), reporting 2H EBITDA of $407m and giving a margin of 12.5% (consensus 10.2%, JPMe 9.9%), helped by IES at the top of guidance range and strong execution in E&C. At the segment level; FY17 E&C net margin of 7.1% (7.5% 2H 17) remains inside the target range of 7-8%. Cash collections into the year-end were also strong with the company reporting net debt of $612m, significantly ahead of pre-close guidance of ~$850m. PFC continues to prioritize deleveraging and has formally committed to exit deep-water, classifying the JSD6000 as held for sale. A further impairment on GSA due to high gas oil ratio is something of a disappointment. Finally, we note that while no update on the SFO was given, CEO Ayman Asfari has had his board restrictions, in place since May 2017, lifted. PFC is well covered for 2018 (greater than 90%), but contract awards will continue to be the focus, particularly given the expected 2H bias for contract awards this year. Overall we see today’s results as another indication of continuing solid operations and remain OW."

SocGen comment:
"We reiterate our Buy rating following the just released stronger-than-expected 2017 results. We think the sharp greater than 50% drop in the share price following the 12 May announcement of a UK Serious Fraud Office investigation is excessive, even assuming a heavy fine (i.e. $320m as implied by Rolls Royce’s SFO fine) or an even steeper penalty (we have $640m built into our valuation). The group’s strong 1H17 results underpin our positive view; SFO aside, we think order intake is now likely to be the key share price driver."

thanks harry .... i already hold and it's nice to think someone thinks PFC remains a good company

Numis, which I didn't post, has a TP of £7, just to give you more comfort!

PFC is having a 2nd strong day (+4.5%), albeit from a low starting point
it certainly has a mountain to climb to get anywhere near the previous heights of a few years ago
neverthless, assuming the company survives as now seems at least reasonably certain, it's not a bad one to hold in that sector

Once the SFO have declared their final penalty, this should surge, imo. The uncertainty is that the assumed fine is too low.
I don't hold at mo, but on my watch list. 400p seems very good support.

StockMarketWire.com
Petrofac said it had won an engineering, procurement and construction contract from Bharat Petroleum worth around $135m for work at its Kochi Refinery in India.

The 27-month contract was for the addition of a new 'motor sprit' block of refining units, which would increase the current output of the facility to meet fuel quality standards.

Credit Suisse today reaffirms its neutral investment rating on Petrofac Ltd (LON:PFC) and raised its price target to 460p (from 440p).

StockMarketWire.com
Petrofac said it had been awarded a $200m contract by Hindustan Petroleum to conduct work at the Visakh refinery in India.

The lump-sum engineering, procurement and construction project spanned 30 months and involved working on the sulphur recovery unit during a refinery modernisation project.

Jefferies comment today:
"PFC has once again reached our target price but this time we retain Buy-rating and increase Price Target to 670p (from 600p) due to a positive impression visiting PFC's core Middle East business. While Corporate overhang (SFO) & expansionary strategies (IES, JDS vessel) have de-rated the stock materially in recent years, Petrofac's core E&C business has continued to deliver and stands at the heart of a much more coherent & focused forward strategy, in our view."

SocGen comment:
"We reiterate our Buy and raise our DCF-based TP to 719p (from 570p). Management re-affirmed that it is committed to maximising shareholder returns through a combination of financial deleveraging (low capex + asset disposals) and (potentially) further cost-cutting initiatives. We also see scope for consensus upgrades in the short term. Petrofac is now our preferred stock in the sector."

StockMarketWire.com
Oil services group Petrofac said it had agreed to sell a vessel-building project to Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries for $190m.

Petrofac said it would also get a 10% interest in a new special purpose vehicle set up to own the vessel once it had been commissioned.

The upfront $190m payment, however, would be offset by $23m retained by Petrofac under a previous hull and marine contract with Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries.

The remaining proceeds of the sale would be used to reduce debt. The project was referred to by the name JSD6000.

'This agreement materially completes our disposal of the project, in line with our stated intention to exit the deep-water market,' chief executive Ayman Asfari said.

'It is a further positive step in the execution of our stated strategy to focus on our core strengths, deliver organic growth and reduce capital intensity.'

StockMarketWire.com
Oil service group Petrofac said it had been awarded more than $1.7bn of new orders in the year to date, while confirming the arrival of its new chairman.

The company had 'continued to make good progress in 2018 delivering our strategy of focusing on our core, delivering organic growth and reducing capital intensity', chief executive Ayman Asfari said in speech notes for its annual general meeting.

Chairman Rijnhard van Tets stood down following three years in the role, to be replaced by Rene Medori.

StockMarketWire.com
Oil services company Petrofac said it was trading in line with its expectations, with its year-to-date order intake reaching $1.8bn.

Ahead of its interim result for the six months through June, the company also said that net debt at 30 June was expected to about $0.9bn, also in line with expectations. at 30 June 2018 in line with expectations

'We are well-positioned on several bids and tendering activity remains high with around $20bn of bid opportunities due for award in the second half of the year,' chief executive Ayman Asfari said.

'We delivered a major milestone in April with the sale of the JSD6000 installation vessel, in line with our strategy of focusing on our core and reducing capital intensity.'

'Furthermore, we are well positioned for the second half with good revenue visibility, a strong competitive position and healthy liquidity.'

JP Morgan Cazenove today reaffirms its overweight investment rating on Petrofac Ltd (LON:PFC) and raised its price target to 680p (from 590p).

DISPOSAL OF CHERGUI ASSET
Petrofac announces that it has agreed the sale of its entire 45% interest in the Chergui asset in Tunisia to Perenco. This sale marks another milestone in the Group's strategy to transition back to a capital light business model by divesting non-core assets and follows the recent disposal of the JSD6000 offshore pipelaying vessel project.

All Chergui employees will transfer to Perenco as part of the transaction, which is expected to conclude before the end of the year. Petrofac is expected to book a small gain on the transaction.

Chief Financial Officer Alastair Cochran said: "This transaction demonstrates we are delivering on our clear strategy of focusing on our core and reducing capital intensity."

StockMarketWire.com
Petrofac said it had been awarded a $200m contract by Dutch-German transmission grid operator TenneT for the Hollandse Kust Zuid offshore grid connection for wind farms in the North Sea.

The Dutch government was targeting a total of 3.5 gigawatt of wind energy production capacity offshore by 2023.

To achieve its goal, five 700 megawatt standardised concept transformer substations were planned for installation offshore Netherlands.

Petrofac said it would be responsible for the engineering, procurement, construction and installation of the third and fourth substations, which had a total contract value of around $200m.

The first substation, HKZ platform Alpha, was scheduled to become operational in 2021.

HKZ platform Beta was still subject to the tendering of the wind farm concession by the Dutch government and subsequently was scheduled to become operational in 2022.

'We have been involved in a number of projects with TenneT in the North Sea, so are delighted with the opportunity to support them with this key project,' chief commercial officer George Salibi said.

'The award of this EU tender builds on our relationship and is further demonstration of Petrofac's expansion into adjacent sectors, including renewable energy.'

This one's been back on the charge.