AR, CLR and BCEI updates from Truist Financial - Feb 19

[dan_s]

Energy
Antero Resources Corporation (AR, $8.96, Hold) - Proactively
Addressing Debt and FT though Time Needed to Boost
Shareholder Returns - Antero announced a partner to help satisfy
incremental FT with an active plan of > 300 wells through 2024.
The company also continues to address debt through various
avenues despite spending remaining relatively unchanged in the
coming quarters. Capital efficiencies and lower operating costs
could continue to improve as drilling remains in premium buckets
though we forecast EV/FCF to remain slightly below other natural
gas focused operators. - Neal Dingmann

Continental Resources, Inc. (CLR, $21.82, Buy) - Strong
Near-term FCF Potential Masks Cautionary Longer Term Issues
- We forecast CLR to generate nearly $1Bn in FCF this year
& more next driven by improved pricing, active D&C & solid
operating efficiencies. We believe investors will reward shares
as CLR delivers on its near-term goal of 40% CFO through debt
reduction/potential future dividends that we believe could be
seen soon. While we remain cautious of avg. returns/margins on
existing assets and the new PRB acquisition, we believe CLR will
pull the right levers in the near term to generate strong FCF. In
fact, we believe production growth could be >5% this year driven
by the likely 8/3 Bakken rigs/fracs. - Neal Dingmann

Bonanza Creek Energy, Inc. (BCEI, $26.68, Hold) - Notable
Upcoming Scale to Provide Opportunities - Bonanza has done
a nice job of improving margins through increased returns and
lower costs with more to potentially come post the HighPoint
(HPR – NR) deal closing. While the company appears to have
a competitive advantage after operating in CO for quite some
time, we remain cautiously optimistic over the state’s upcoming
political landscape. While our pro forma model suggests notable
future FCF, we are taking a bit of a wait and see approach for the
acquisition closing. - Neal Dingmann