Resolute Energy (REN) Snaps Up Permian Assets For $135M

Shares of Denver, CO-based domestic oil and gas finder Resolute Energy Corp. (NYSE:REN) surged to a 52-week high after the company agreed to acquire certain properties in the highly productive Delaware basin region from privately-owned Firewheel Energy for $135 million. Of the total consideration, $90 million will be paid in cash, while the remaining $45 million will be settled through the issuance of 2,114,523 Resolute Energy common stock.

The to-be-acquired assets include 3,293 net acres of operating area with estimated proved reserves of 6.2 million barrels of oil equivalent, plus interest in wells (13 horizontal and 15 vertical) that churn out around 1,200 barrels of oil equivalent daily.

The transaction – effective Sep 1 and expected to close Oct 7 – would expand Resolute Energy’s footprint in Permian’s Delaware Basin, a region that continues to be profitable even at the current low prices. Importantly, almost the entire portion of the acreage (95% to be precise) and bulk of the production/proved reserves are positioned within the Mustang project area in Reeves County, where Resolute Energy holds the operatorship.

To finance the cash component of the deal, Resolute Energy announced a private offering of 55,000 shares of a newly-created preferred class of stock at $1,000 apiece that pays an 8.125% dividend yield and can be converted to common stock at a conversion price of $29.53 per share.

Resolute Energy currently sports a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), implying that it is expected to outperform the broader U.S. equity market over the next one to three months.

In addition to Resolute Energy, there are certain other energy players like CONE Midstream Partners L.P. (NYSE:CNNX) , Ultra Petroleum Corp. (OTC:UPLMQ) and Evolution Petroleum Corp. (NYSE:EPM) that offer even greater value and are worth buying now. All the firms sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Headquartered in Canonsburg, PA, CONE Midstream Partners is a master limited partnership focused on natural gas and condensate gathering in the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia. It surpassed estimates in each of the last four quarters at an average rate of 19.38%.

Houston, Texas-based Ultra Petroleum is an independent energy firm engaged in the acquisition, development, exploration and production of oil and gas properties. The 2016 Zacks Consensus Estimate for this company is 77 vents, representing 148% earnings per share growth over 2015. The next year’s average forecast is $2.53, pointing to 229% growth.

Formed in Sep 2003, Evolution Petroleum is a Houston, TX based exploration and production company that develops reserves through the application of conventional and specialized technology to domestic onshore oil and gas resources. It has surprised earnings to the upside in two of the last 4 quarters at an average rate of 45.84%.

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