Eagle Ford activity appears to be coasting — analyst Scott Gruber of Bernstein Research calls it “Eagle Flat” — and Gruber questions whether the formation has passed its peak or will rebound in 2013 as E&Ps reload their budgets.

In 2010-11, the Eagle Ford was the primary growth engine for the domestic services industry as the rig count increased eight-fold, Gruber wrote in the first of a series of reports investigating the outlook for drilling and completion demand across major U.S. oil basins.

However, active rigs recently fell to 200 ...