CIMAREX ENERGY $128.68 (New York symbol XEC; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (303-295-3995; www.cimarex.com; Shares outstanding: 95.0 million; Market cap: $12.0 billion; Dividend yield: 0.3%) produces and explores for natural gas and oil. Gas makes up 47% of the company’s output; the remaining 53% is oil.
Cimarex’s properties are mostly in the Wolfcamp shale area of Texas and New Mexico. The company also has production sites in Oklahoma’s Cana- Woodford shale region.
In the three months ended June 30, 2016, Cimarex produced an average 168,006 barrels of oil equivalent per day. That’s down 5.1% from 176,973 a year earlier. The reduced output, along with lower oil and gas prices, lowered cash flow per share by 41.9%, to $1.58 from $2.72.
The company planned to spend between $600 million and $650 million on exploration and development this year. That was down 29% from 2015 levels. However, unlike many producers, Cimarex sped up its spending in the second half of this year. It now plans to spend a total of $750 million for all of 2016.
The company’s balance sheet is very strong. That’s important because of volatile oil and gas prices, which have forced some producers to issue more shares and drastically cut costs. Cimarex’s long-term debt of $1.5 billion is a low 12.5% of its market cap. What’s more, it won’t have to start repaying that until 2022. The company currently holds cash of $641.7 million, or $6.75 a share.
Cimarex is a buy.