Ensco International 2Q earnings jump 17 percent

Ensco International Inc. on Thursday posted a 17 percent jump in second-quarter profit and a surge in revenue, beating Wall Street expectations.

For the period ended June 30, the contract driller posted profit of $296.7 million, or $2.07 per share, compared with profit of $254.4 million, or $1.72 per share, in the year-ago period.

Revenue jumped to $637.1 million from $548.6 million.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected, on average, earnings of $1.98 per share on revenue of $610.6 million.

The average day rate for the company's 44-rig jackup fleet for the period increased to $148,200 from $142,900 over the year-ago period.

Operating expenses jumped to $276.6 million from $234.7 million.

Shares fell $3.20, or 4 percent, to $69.60 in midday trading. The stock has ranged from $45.94 to $83.24 over the past year.