By Caroline Humer and Euan Rocha
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Parker Drilling Co. (PKD.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), whose stock has risen with other oil and gas drillers amid sector-wide takeover speculation, is not positioning itself to be sold, Chief Executive Robert Parker said on Thursday.
"The company is not for sale," Parker told the Reuters Global Energy Summit in New York.
"It's always a board decision ... but we're not positioning ourselves to be sold. We're positioning ourselves to increase our shareholder value," he said.
Shares of Parker Drilling fell 3.87 percent, or 46 cents, to close at $11.42 on the New York Stock Exchange, after sliding as much as 1.3 percent earlier in the day.
Parker shares have been boosted by speculation that the company is a takeover target and reached a year high of $12.10 on June 4. The stock has risen more than 40 percent so far this year while the broader Philadelphia Stock Exchange oil index gained 25 percent during that time.
While the sector has been the subject of much speculation regarding industry mergers and acquisitions, Parker said that the deep water drilling sector probably does not need to consolidate.
"Personally, I don't feel there's a lot of need for M&A on the offshore deep water efforts," he said, explaining that the sector does not have too many players.
He also said that because valuations have risen in the group since last year, the company has turned more to building than buying for growth. Continued...
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