Stock price when the opinion was issued
Oil is down, which doesn't help. The budget shows a slight decline in production from year end exit rates, so investors may be worried that all the spending ($1.2B) is not going to boost actual average production rates. BTE also updated its five-year plan, which looks OK to us with a planned reduction in debt. But the sector remains out of favour overall right now.
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They executed in their drilling. There's been huge multiple contraction among small/mid-caps. He exited around $3.85-3.90. Shares are in an air pocket now, falling on no natural buyers (energy is out of favour). Stock is cheap, given cash flow. They pay half that cash to buy back shares. Are better stocks than this, but wouldn't rule out buying this again.
Producers always lead the commodity. So you'd look at this name for guidance on natural gas. The terrible downtrend on the chart is being challenged. Hoping that $2 level is a bottom going back to 2021, and a place "to hang your hat" -- you're not sure what the future holds, but you think the worst is over.
He loves this kind of setup. The story's still a bit negative, but someone's buying it. The price action always has more information than you know, it's trying to tell you something, there is interest there. A good risk here. See his Top Picks.
BTE mentioned that it allocate 50% of free cash flow to its balance sheet and the other 50% to allocating capital to shareholders through buybacks and dividends. Net debt reduced 5% in the quarter but remained high at $2.28B. Earnings were solid as production and net income were up for the quarter. The current capital allocation strategy is quite shareholder friendly but we would like to see debt come down more in the future. The call seemed generally positive.
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