RE:Good Time to Do Share BuybackI couldn't agree more with you. It is a no brainer now that they have reduced debt significantly and are generating free cash flow.
I think they will announce something of the sort once they have closed the deal on Big Horn.
I actually think that part of the fall of late was the lack of news on that front. Obviously, taken down by the recent weakness in commodity prices but I think investors were also hoping to see some of the money back from all those deals. I think the EagleFord deal was very opportunistic and gave them a fantastic leap forward in their production profile. But at this point, announcing a $2Bn share repurchase program seem to make sense. Once the CEO makes a statement in the call that "they do not have coffers big enough to stash all the cash they are generating"...you have to give back to shareholders, no?
Dividend vs. Share buyback? I definitely favor share buybacks with the stock so low...but I know Canadian E&Ps are catering to high dividend yield investors. Right now, the yield is so low that returning it back to its previous level might also make sense to satisfy potential big blockholders who want yield. I imagine they are debating this issue as we speak.