Earnings, Crude Oil Prices Push Halliburton Back Over $48

Joel Elconin is the co-host of Benzinga's #PreMarket Prep, a daily trading idea radio show.

Halliburton Company HAL shares were trading higher by $1.45 (2.7 percent) at $48.34 in Monday's session. The catalyst for the rally, in addition to the rally in crude oil, is a Q1 EPS beat ($0.49 vs. $0.37 estimates) along with better-than-expected revenue ($7.05 billion vs. $6.89 billion estimates).

The issue, which made its all-time high last July at $74.33, declined sharply during the recent rout in crude oil before finally bottoming in December at $37.21. It did revisit that level on January 15, reaching $37.27 before climbing back in the $40 handle in March and adding to those gains this month mirroring the rally in crude oil.

So far, it has surpassed last Wednesday's high ($48.54), reaching $48.93, which represents its highest level since it peaked at $50.33 on November 25 before falling back to close at $48.26. Four days later, it was trading in the lower $40 handle at $40.34. As expected, the sharp decline coincided with the precipitous drop in crude oil prices over the same time period, declining from $78.97 to $71.76, on its way to its multi-year low in March at $45.42.