Friday, November 5, 2010

Apache (NYSE:APA) Soars as BP (NYSE:BP), Mariner (NYSE:ME) Expansion Deals Near Completion

Apache Corp. (NYSE:APA) closed the part of their deal with BP (NYSE:BP) for their oil and gas assets in Egypt, while are set to also close their acquisition of Mariner Energy Inc. (NYSE:ME) once shareholders vote on Wednesday on whether or not to approve the deal, which is valued at $2.6 billion.

The overall deal with BP was for $7 billion, including a variety of assets around the world.

Talking on their earnings call Thursday, Chief Executive Officer Steven Farris said, "The most important thing we face is how we allocate the cash flow that we have. That is key to taking advantage of what we bought. I think we have a truly formidable asset base now."

Company leaders said their major focus going forward will be to integrate the recent acquisitions into the operations of the company.

Profit for the most recent quarter rose to $778.3 million, or $2.12 a share, 76 percent over the $442 million, or $1.30 a share generated last year in the same quarter.

Earnings per share, even though solid, did significantly miss analysts' expectations of $2.24 a share.

The aggressive expansion and its near completion clouded out the miss by Apache, and share price soared by $5.21, closing at $107.79, a 5.08 percent increase.

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