Halliburton, KBR split up

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Halliburton Co. (HAL.N), the No. 2 U.S. oilfield services company, has split off KBR Inc. (KBR.N), an engineering and construction company that had been a unit for 44 years, the companies said on Thursday.

Halliburton first announced plans in January 2005 to separate KBR, whose results had dragged on overall profitability. KBR is the Pentagon's largest contractor in Iraq, and its shares began trading in November.

Under an exchange offer that expired on April 2, Halliburton swapped 135.6 million KBR shares, equal to roughly an 81 percent stake, for 85.3 million of its own shares.

Both companies are based in Houston. Halliburton sparked criticism from some U.S. politicians when it announced plans on March 11 to open a headquarters in Dubai and move Chief Executive David Lesar there, to become better positioned to win contracts in the oil-rich Middle East.

Auditors, Congressional Democrats and the Justice Department have scrutinized Halliburton over the quality and pricing of KBR's work for the U.S. army in Iraq.

In Thursday trading, Halliburton shares closed up 10 cents at $32.94, while KBR fell 2 cents to $20.54.