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Precision Drilling Corp. (TSE:PD)
TSX:PD

Precision Drilling (PD) AI Stock Analysis

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TSE:PD

Precision Drilling

(TSX:PD)

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Neutral 67 (OpenAI - 5.2)
Rating:67Neutral
Price Target:
C$129.00
▲(9.03% Upside)
Action:DowngradedDate:02/18/26
The score is supported by strong technical momentum and improved financial health (better profitability and lower leverage versus prior years). Offsetting this are inconsistent bottom-line results (near break-even net income in 2025) and weak/unclear valuation signals due to a highly negative P/E and no dividend yield data.
Positive Factors
Improved Leverage & Liquidity
Material debt reduction and stronger liquidity raise financial flexibility over the medium term. Lower leverage reduces interest burden and increases capacity to fund rig upgrades, buybacks and absorb downturns, supporting durable capital allocation and resilience across cycles.
Consistent Operating Cash Generation
Sustained operating cash flow demonstrates underlying cash-generating ability independent of accounting earnings. This durable cash conversion supports reinvestment in high-spec rigs, debt paydown and shareholder returns, giving the company structural financial flexibility despite cyclicality.
Technology-Led Fleet Upgrades & U.S. Growth
Investment in proprietary tech and targeted rig upgrades raises service differentiation and efficiency. A higher-spec fleet can command better day rates and utilization, while rising U.S. rig count in gas basins signals structural demand that supports durable margin improvement and competitive positioning.
Negative Factors
Revenue Volatility
Material top-line swings reflect the business’s exposure to commodity cycles and project timing. Revenue volatility reduces predictability of utilization and cash flow, complicates capital planning, and can compress margins during softer periods, limiting steady long-term earnings growth.
Weak Reported Net Income Conversion
A gap between robust operating metrics and near-zero net income indicates vulnerability to below-the-line items (taxes, interest, one-offs). This undermines the translation of operational strength into shareholder earnings and may limit sustainable reinvestment and dividend/buyback capacity.
Canadian Activity Decline & Contract Churn
Persistent declines and contract churn in Canada, a core market, weaken utilization and pricing power. Reduced activity there can persist through seasonal and project deferrals, pressuring dayrates and making revenue and margin recovery slower even if other regional demand improves.

Precision Drilling (PD) vs. iShares MSCI Canada ETF (EWC)

Precision Drilling Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company DescriptionPrecision Drilling Corporation, a drilling company, provides onshore drilling, completion, and production services to exploration and production companies in the oil and natural gas and geothermal industries in North America and the Middle East. The company operates in two segments, Contract Drilling Services; and Completion and Production Services. The Contract Drilling Services segment offers onshore well drilling services to exploration and production companies in the oil and natural gas industry. This segment's services include land and turnkey drilling; and procurement and distribution of oilfield supplies, as well as manufacture and refurbishment of drilling and service rig equipment. As of December 31, 2021, it operated 227 land drilling rigs, including 109 in Canada; 105 in the United States; 6 in Kuwait; 4 in Saudi Arabia; 2 in the Kurdistan region of Iraq; and 1 in the country of Georgia. As of December 31, 2021, this segment also operated 47 AlphaTM rigs with commercial AlphaAutomation; 18 AlphaApps; 4 grid power capable rigs; and 60 natural gas or bi-fuel rigs. The Completion and Production Services segment provides service rigs for well completion, workover, abandonment, maintenance, and re-entry preparation services; wellsite accommodations; oilfield surface equipment rentals; and camp and catering services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies. As of December 31, 2021, it operated 123 well completion and workover service rigs, including 113 in Canada and 10 in the United States; 1,900 oilfield rental items, including surface storage, small-flow wastewater treatment, power generation, and solids control equipment; 109 wellsite accommodation units; 943 drill camp beds; 822 base camp beds; and three kitchen diners in Canada. Precision Drilling Corporation was incorporated in 1951 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.
How the Company Makes MoneyPrecision Drilling generates revenue primarily through its contract drilling services, where it charges clients for the use of its drilling rigs and associated services. The company operates on a dayrate model, whereby clients pay a fixed rate for each day the rig is utilized. Additional revenue streams include directional drilling services, which involve advanced drilling techniques to enhance efficiency and reduce costs for clients, and well servicing operations that provide maintenance and repair services for oil and gas wells. Strategic partnerships with major oil and gas companies enhance its market reach and reliability, while the company's investment in technology and innovations allows it to offer high-value services that attract clients and drive earnings.

Precision Drilling Earnings Call Summary

Earnings Call Date:Oct 22, 2025
(Q3-2025)
|
% Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Apr 23, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The earnings call reflects a positive outlook with strong operational performance and strategic initiatives in place. Despite a few challenges, especially in Canadian drilling activity and contract churn, the company's technological advancements, leadership transition, and financial metrics indicate a robust position for future growth.
Q3-2025 Updates
Positive Updates
Leadership Transition and Strategic Continuity
Precision Drilling announced the retirement of Kevin Neveu and the appointment of Carey Ford as CEO. The leadership transition involved promoting internal candidates, ensuring continuity and stability in management.
Debt Reduction and Capital Allocation
The company achieved its debt reduction target, reducing debt by $101 million, and is on track to allocate 35% to 45% of free cash flow to share buybacks, having repurchased $54 million worth of shares.
Operational Growth in U.S.
U.S. drilling activity increased with an average of 36 rigs, up by 3 rigs from the previous quarter, due to strong performance in gas-weighted basins.
Capital Budget Increase
The capital budget for 2025 was increased by $20 million to $260 million, allowing for 5 additional contracted rig upgrades, indicating strong demand projections.
Technological Advancements
Precision's technology initiatives, such as the Alpha and EverGreen platforms, are showing positive results with 90% of active Super Triple rigs running Alpha technology.
Strong Financial Metrics
Adjusted EBITDA was $118 million, equating to $129 million before share-based compensation, and daily operating margins were resilient, within prior guidance ranges.
Negative Updates
Decline in Canadian Drilling Activity
Canadian drilling activity averaged 63 active rigs, a decrease of 9 rigs from Q3 2024 due to project deferrals.
Challenges with Contract Churn
Contract churn continues to challenge activity levels, although future opportunities are being explored.
International Activity Decrease
International drilling activity decreased slightly, averaging 7 rigs, down from 8 in the prior year Q3.
Company Guidance
During the Precision Drilling Corporation's 2025 Third Quarter Results Conference Call, several key metrics and guidance updates were shared. The company reported an adjusted EBITDA of $118 million, with a previous year comparison of $142 million. In Canada, drilling activity averaged 63 rigs, while in the U.S., the rig count increased to 36, reflecting Precision's strength in gas-weighted basins. Operating margins were reported at $13,007 per day in Canada and $8,700 per day in the U.S. Precision increased its 2025 capital budget by $20 million to support five additional rig upgrades, bringing total capital expenditures to $260 million. The company also achieved its debt reduction target of $101 million and repurchased $54 million in shares. Looking ahead, Precision expects Canadian activity for the winter drilling season to meet or exceed last year's levels, while U.S. margins are projected to remain stable. Effective tax rates for 2025 are anticipated to be between 45% and 50%, with cash taxes remaining low, and SG&A expenses are expected to range from $90 million to $95 million. The company maintains a long-term goal of achieving a net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio of less than 1x, with a current ratio of approximately 1.3x and over $400 million in liquidity.

Precision Drilling Financial Statement Overview

Summary
Operating profitability and leverage have improved versus 2020–2022, with consistently positive operating cash flow and generally positive free cash flow. However, results remain cyclical and variable, and 2025 net income fell to near break-even despite healthy operating metrics, raising concerns about bottom-line consistency.
Income Statement
58
Neutral
Revenue has been volatile: strong growth in 2022 and 2025, but flat-to-down in 2024. Profitability improved materially from deep losses in 2020–2022 to solid operating margins in 2023–2025, with EBITDA margins remaining healthy; however, net income deteriorated sharply in 2025 to near break-even despite decent EBIT, signaling heavier below-the-line costs and/or one-time items. Overall, the core earnings profile looks stronger than a few years ago, but reported bottom-line consistency is a key weakness.
Balance Sheet
66
Positive
Leverage has improved meaningfully versus 2020–2022, with debt-to-equity stepping down from roughly ~0.9–1.0x to ~0.5x in 2024–2025 and total debt trending lower. Equity is sizable and relatively stable, supporting financial flexibility. The main watch-out is that the business remains cyclical, and returns on equity have swung from negative (2020–2022) to strong (2023) and then more modest (2024), indicating performance can change quickly with industry conditions.
Cash Flow
63
Positive
Operating cash flow has been consistently positive and improved substantially versus 2021–2022, and it covered net income by more than 1x in 2023–2025, which supports earnings quality. Free cash flow is positive across recent years, but it has been choppy and declined meaningfully in 2025 (and was modest in 2022), suggesting higher reinvestment needs and/or working-capital swings. In short: solid cash generation, but free-cash-flow stability is not yet dependable.
BreakdownDec 2025Dec 2024Dec 2023Dec 2022Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue1.84B1.90B1.94B1.62B986.85M
Gross Profit286.15M1.59B733.31M213.56M6.38M
EBITDA489.62M535.85M657.73M311.61M191.19M
Net Income1.84M111.19M289.24M-34.29M-177.39M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets2.73B2.96B3.02B2.88B2.66B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments85.78M73.77M54.18M21.59M40.59M
Total Debt791.41M887.59M992.19M1.15B1.17B
Total Liabilities1.14B1.27B1.44B1.65B1.44B
Stockholders Equity1.58B1.68B1.58B1.23B1.23B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow148.71M265.38M273.82M52.85M63.28M
Operating Cash Flow412.18M482.08M500.57M237.10M139.22M
Investing Cash Flow-208.32M-202.99M-214.78M-144.41M-56.61M
Financing Cash Flow-191.56M-261.38M-251.97M-113.17M-149.91M

Precision Drilling Technical Analysis

Technical Analysis Sentiment
Positive
Last Price118.32
Price Trends
50DMA
107.24
Positive
100DMA
95.55
Positive
200DMA
83.57
Positive
Market Momentum
MACD
3.62
Positive
RSI
57.93
Neutral
STOCH
34.88
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For TSE:PD, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 118.32 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 117.41, above the 50-day MA of 107.24, and above the 200-day MA of 83.57, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 3.62 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 57.93 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 34.88 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for TSE:PD.

Precision Drilling Peers Comparison

Overall Rating
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (65)
Financial Indicators
Name
Overall Rating
Market Cap
P/E Ratio
ROE
Dividend Yield
Revenue Growth
EPS Growth
73
Outperform
C$93.68M4.3412.87%24.94%956.65%
72
Outperform
C$224.20M8.1211.51%-16.20%-38.85%
69
Neutral
C$546.72M9.9923.65%10.44%8.98%-27.41%
67
Neutral
C$1.53B-16,902.860.06%-5.55%-74.96%
65
Neutral
$15.17B7.614.09%5.20%3.87%-62.32%
56
Neutral
C$669.28M-14.41-3.50%-2.47%-246.73%
55
Neutral
C$85.28M-3.28-2.38%-0.38%6.98%
* Energy Sector Average
Performance Comparison
Ticker
Company Name
Price
Change
% Change
TSE:PD
Precision Drilling
118.32
51.55
77.21%
TSE:AKT.A
AKITA Drilling Ltd
2.41
0.92
61.74%
TSE:ACX
Cathedral Energy Services
6.40
1.22
23.55%
TSE:ESI
Ensign Energy Services
3.62
1.06
41.41%
TSE:PHX
PHX Energy Services
12.05
4.01
49.91%
TSE:WRG
Western Energy Services
2.52
0.18
7.69%

Precision Drilling Corporate Events

Business Operations and StrategyStock BuybackFinancial Disclosures
Precision Drilling Hits 2025 Debt Target, Boosts Buybacks Amid Strong Rig Demand
Positive
Jan 6, 2026

Precision Drilling announced it met its 2025 capital allocation objectives, including reducing debt by $101 million, ending the year with approximately $85 million in cash and $447 million in total available liquidity, and returning $76 million to shareholders through share repurchases that cut its share count by 6%. The company highlighted progress toward its longer-term goal of repaying $700 million of debt between 2022 and 2027 and lowering its Net Debt to Adjusted EBITDA ratio below 1.0 times, noting that it has already reduced debt by $535 million over four years and significantly lowered annual interest expense, with plans to further deleverage and increase buybacks in 2026. Operationally, Precision reported strong demand in Canada for its Super Series rigs and technology and environmental offerings, with high winter utilization, while U.S. activity remained steady amid a recovering natural gas rig market; the company also moved to streamline its fleet by decommissioning 31 underutilized rigs and recording non-cash asset charges tied to aging equipment, signaling an ongoing shift toward more advanced, higher-margin drilling assets.

The most recent analyst rating on (TSE:PD) stock is a Buy with a C$81.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Precision Drilling stock, see the TSE:PD Stock Forecast page.

Financial Disclosures
Precision Drilling Sets February Date for 2025 Year-End Results Call
Neutral
Jan 5, 2026

Precision Drilling Corporation will release its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 financial results after markets close on February 11, 2026, followed by a conference call and webcast on February 12 to discuss the performance. The scheduled call, which requires advance registration for dial-in details and will also be available via webcast replay on the company’s website, underscores Precision’s ongoing engagement with investors and other stakeholders as it reports on its operational and financial trajectory in a changing energy services market.

The most recent analyst rating on (TSE:PD) stock is a Buy with a C$81.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Precision Drilling stock, see the TSE:PD Stock Forecast page.

Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.

Disclaimer

This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.Date of analysis: Feb 18, 2026