[Editor's note: This story was updated at 4:06 p.m. CST March 8.]
Hess Corp. (NYSE: HES) on March 8 disclosed plans to buy back an additional $1 billion in shares by the end of 2018, averting a second tangle with activist hedge fund Elliott Management on the eve of nominations for the Hess board.
The new buyback would bring its total repurchase plan to $1.5 billion since late last year. It includes an accelerated share repurchase of $500 million. In that arrangement, generally, the company will buy its shares from an investment bank.
The oil and gas producer said it would also add two new drilling rigs to its North Dakota operations in the Bakken and look to lower operating costs at its biggest production area.
Hess shares dipped 13 cents to $46.61 in afternoon trading March 8 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Hess did not mention Elliott in its disclosure, but the company's CEO said the greater buybacks would not hurt plans for heavy future investments in Guyana. Nominations for its board close on March 9.
"We can expand the buyback authorization without compromising our ability to fund this world-class investment," CEO John Hess said in a statement.
Elliott, which owns more than 6% of Hess, said it supports the buyback and praised Hess's plans to review its operations ahead of the Guyana project.
"We are encouraged that the company has indicated that they are committed to closing the value gap and will be dynamic in exploring further steps to do so" before beginning to produce oil from the project in Guyana, Elliott said in a statement. ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), operator of the Guyana project, expects oil production there to begin by March 2020.
In December, Elliott criticized what it called "continuing underperformance" at Hess, which has not made a profit since 2014, when its stock price was more than double current levels. Elliott expects to stay actively invested and to track changes at Hess, according to a person familiar with the fund's plans.
Hess's oil and natural gas production has dropped 7% in three years due largely to maturing operations in North Dakota's Bakken. Rivals have bounced back faster from the industry downturn.
Back In The Ring
Elliott, the hedge fund led by billionaire Paul Singer, pushed for changes at Hess in 2013. Just ahead of the annual shareholder meeting in May 2013, Hess conceded to an agreement that added three Elliott appointees to the board, while Elliott supported five directors from Hess's slate. John Hess remained CEO but yielded his role as chairman.
RELATED:
Elliott Seeks To Remove CEO John Hess Of Hess Corp
Hess Cutting Hundreds Of Workers As It Battles Activist Investor
Investors have increasingly demanded companies to return more cash as oil prices have more than doubled since their lows in 2016.
The news from Hess' buyback program comes a day after Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN) laid out similar plans and industry major Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) on March 6 said it was looking at buying back shares three years after halting its program.
Recommended Reading
Solar Panel Tariff, AD/CVD Speculation No Concern for NextEra
2024-04-24 - NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum addressed speculation regarding solar panel tariffs and antidumping and countervailing duties on its latest earnings call.
BCCK, Vision RNG Enter Clean Energy Partnership
2024-04-23 - BCCK will deliver two of its NiTech Single Tower Nitrogen Rejection Units (NRU) and amine systems to Vision RNG’s landfill gas processing sites in Seneca and Perry counties, Ohio.
Clean Energy Begins Operations at South Dakota RNG Facility
2024-04-23 - Clean Energy Fuels’ $26 million South Dakota RNG facility will supply fuel to commercial users such as UPS and Amazon.
Romito: Net Zero’s Costly Consequences, and Industry’s ‘Silver Bullet’
2024-04-22 - Decarbonization is generally considered a reasonable goal when presented within the context of a trend, as opposed to a regulatory absolute.