Pioneer Natural Resources Company (PXD, $83.50, Buy; Target $149.00)
Announces beat and raise on impressive capital efficiency gains - Derrick Whitfield at Stifel
- We view this as positive. The positives include: i) a total equivalent and oil production beat (1.5% and 0.9% above consensus), ii) an adjusted EBITDAX beat (5.2% above consensus) due to decreased production costs (3.5% below Stifel), iii) a slight increase to 2020 oil production guidance on reiterated capex, and iv) increases in D&C efficiency and an additional $0.3mm of realized well cost savings ($2.0mm realized YTD). The only negative was a slightly higher negative cash flow impact from FT expected for Q420. Net-net, Pioneer continues to differentiate itself as one of the top defensive-oriented investments in the sector.