Oil services companies' fees for services and equity values have always been cyclical as oil market conditions ebb and flow. But this time, they are in a secular decline. "The oilfield services industry has fundamentally changed. Companies will no longer be able to generate the high operating margins they did in 2014," according to an S&P report.
Oil producers have become more efficient, able to do more with less. Much has been made of the fact that the rig count is dropping and U.S. crude production is leveling off. However, there have been efficiency gains