JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) –  Rock boring and drilling services provider Master Drilling has advised shareholders of an earnings fall.

The Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed company advised in a stock exchange news service (SENS) announcement that earnings per share (EPS) for the six months ending June 30 were expected to be between 40.5% and 60.5% lower than for the comparative period last year.

The company, headed by CEO Danie Pretorius, stated that headline earnings per share (HEPS) would be between 34.1% and 54.1% lower than the comparative period.

In terms of the listings requirements, listed companies are required to publish a trading statement as soon as it becomes reasonably certain that the financial results for the next period to be reported on will differ by at least 20% from those of the corresponding prior period.

“The Covid-19 pandemic continues to spread, and these trying times come with a high degree of uncertainty, fluidity, and unexpected challenges,” the company stated in the SENS notice.

Master Drilling has operations in 23 countries, including those that are being severely impacted by the virus with various restrictive measures imposed.

EPS for the six months are expected to be between 30.30c and 45.70c a share compared with 76.70c a share for the six months to June 30, 2019.

HEPS are expected to be 76.70c a share for the six months ended June 30.

In the year ended December 31, Master Drilling recorded an increase in revenue of 6.9% to $148.3-million, and a slight decrease in operating profit of 5.1% to $22.4-million.

Established in 1986, the company is a drilling technology company that provides a mechanised range of services to the mining, infrastructure and energy sectors.