Ranger Industries, Inc. (NYSE: RNGR) reported Q4 EPS of ($0.43), $0.12 worse than the analyst estimate of ($0.31). Revenue for the quarter came in at $41.5 million versus the consensus estimate of $37.8 million.

"After two straight quarters of severely depressed activity, Q4 marked the first real signs of an industry turnaround. Commodity prices have responded to the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, global energy demand is improving and a stronger commitment to capital discipline by U.S. shale operators is emerging.

I am proud of the fact that during the 2020 downturn Ranger remained committed to our long-term strategies of driving efficiencies, cost management, safety and service, as we high graded our client list. It is these efforts that allowed us to generate significant, positive EBITDA each quarter through this challenging year and further decrease our modest amount of long-term debt by nearly 50%, while significantly increasing our blue-chip customer market share.

Our fourth quarter High Specification Rig results are tangible examples of the improving industry dynamics and Ranger’s current premium position in this recovering market. During the quarter we experienced a significantly higher demand for our rig services, with current activities focused on returning wells back online or maintaining production levels.

While we are pleased to see the health of our industry improving and our strategic efforts continuing to pay dividends, the speed of our activity ramp did lead to significant reactivation costs during the quarter.

These expenditures negatively impacted fourth quarter’s margins, but were one-time in nature as they were focused on the preparation of rigs for long-term top-tier clients and the hiring or reinstatement of a significant number of employees. Also, to a lesser extent, our High Spec Rig results were also impacted by customer consolidation and COVID-19 related interruptions. However, in spite of these negative impacts, we are pleased with this segment’s strong revenue and EBITDA growth.

Within our Completion & Other Services segment, our Permian wireline business experienced year-end budget exhaustion interruptions by a material customer in mid-November, and COVID-19 related delays on the startup of new simul-frac operations with another customer. Again, these issues are expected to be one-time in nature.

The current trends of the market are setting up for a much more favorable 2021. Oil prices and U.S. land drilling activity are up 30% and 15%, respectively, since the beginning of 2021. More operators are adopting simul-frac operations leading to greater completion intensity, and maintenance activity has started the year strong. But the key element for the improvement of the Oil Field Services ('OFS') space will be the ability to recapture some level of pricing. In order to achieve this, pricing discipline must return to the market and further OFS consolidation needs to occur, Ranger is committed to participating in both."

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