HOUSTON — Exploration and production company Apache Corp. reported a $4.8 billion loss in the fourth quarter and said it would slow its activity in the face of falling oil prices.

The Houston-based company said it’s dramatically reducing its rig count, which will fall from 91 in the third quarter of 2014 to 27 by the end of this month.

It’s also delaying some well completions until service prices decrease, and it has reduced its hydraulic fracturing crews by 50 percent.

In a statement, Apache chief executive John Christmann said although the company has a “substantial’ inventory of assets that are economical even at current oil prices, “we believe it more prudent to curtail our activity until costs are lower and prices recover.”

Apache’s $4.8 billion loss, the equivalent of a $12.78 loss per share, compares to earnings of $174 million, or 43 cents per share, during the fourth quarter of 2013.

The financial losses were largely the result of charges based on a reduction in value of oil and gas assets and goodwill impairments associated with earlier acquisitions.

The company also said it could cut its capital budget by more than 57 percent this year as it adjusts to oil prices that have fallen in half from their peaks last summer.

The company anticipates spending $2.1 billion to $2.3 billion in North America this year, and $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion internationally and offshore. Last year, the company had a $8.5 billion capital budget.

“We have planned our budget and operations in such a way that we can dynamically manage our activity levels and capital spending to respond quickly to material changes in commodity prices,” Christmann, who took over following the sudden retirement of his predecessor last month, said in a statement.

“Should we see a meaningful rebound in oil prices from current strip levels or a notable shift in our cost structure, we have the organizational capability to add rigs and production quickly and efficiently from our ready inventory of highly economic projects in North America.”

Christmann also declared the completion of Apache’s effort to restructure its portfolio. Last year, Apache announced $7 billion in asset sales, plus $1.2 billion in North American acquisitions. The company is seeking to shrink its international footprint and become more tightly focused on North American liquids production.

For the year, Apache reported a $5.4 billion loss, compared to earnings of $2.2 billion in 2014.