Acergy earnings: Servicing the undersea oil & gas industry

In the deep sea oil and gas game, contractors offering "seabed-to-surface" piping and rig services are not altogether common. One of the better known outfits is headquartered in the Surrey town of Sunbury-on-Thames.

Acergy SA (NASDAQ: ACGY) provides subsurface engineering and construction contracting services for the offshore oil and gas industry worldwide. The firm operates a fleet of eight ships, four barges, and 36 remotely operated vessels to lay pipelines and provide construction, inspection, and maintenance services on offshore rigs. Acergy serves firms working in the offshore areas of nineteen countries in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North and South America, and West Africa.

The firm pleased investors last week, when it announced solid Q2 results and issued upside guidance for FY07 revenues. The CEO said, "During the quarter, we effectively managed high levels of activity, complex operations and a stretched logistics and supply chain, while continuing to consolidate our growth and recruit new staff." The stock popped into a bullish "pennant" consolidation pattern on the news. Prices frequently exit pennants moving in the same direction they were traveling when they entered them. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Analysts see a 36% growth rate, through the next year. The ACGY PEG (0.75), Price to Sales ratio (2.14), Return on Investment (25.89%) and Return on Equity (37.50%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutions own about 12 percent of the outstanding shares. Over the past twelve months, the stock has traded between $14.79 and $27.77. A stop-loss of $23.75 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.