Imperial Capital Raises Price Target on WPX Energy (WPX) as New Management Drives Down Costs

Imperial Capital maintains an Outperform rating on WPX Energy (NYSE: WPX), and raised the price target to $23.00 (from $17.00), as new management drives down costs. Analyst Bob Christensen says that new management is building a stronger balance sheet and is pre-positioning the company for future success.

Analyst Bob Christensen commented, "We are maintaining our Outperform rating on WPX shares and are raising our one-year price target to $23 from $17, about 73% above the recent share price. WPX’s new management is driving down costs, improving margins, realigning the organization, building a strong balance sheet and pre-positioning the company for future success in our opinion. In early 2014, a new President and CEO, Richard (Rick) Muncrief, was hired. Mr. Muncrief formerly worked at Continental Resources and led that company’s pre-eminent Williston Bakken crude oil effort. In mid-2014, Mr. Clay Gaspar, a top petroleum engineer at Anadarko, joined the company as SVP of Operations and Resource Development. Over the past three years, WPX has redefined itself, selling $1.4bn of properties, sharpening its focus. Its latest “bolt-on” purchase of oil prone acreage in the San Juan Basin of New Mexico is a case in point, in our view."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on WPX Energy click here. For more ratings news on WPX Energy click here.

Shares of WPX Energy closed at $13.03 yesterday.

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