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Will EQT Corporation (EQT) Acquire Gas Producer Alta Resources?

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EQT Corporation (EQT - Free Report) is expected to be in the bidding race for privately-owned Alta Resources, per Bloomberg. The names of companies in the bidding race also include Chesapeake Energy, which emerged from bankruptcy this February.

EQT Corporation is assessing offers for Appalachian gas producer Alta, which can value the company in excess of $3 billion, Bloomberg reported. Alta has control over 239,000 net acres in the Marcellus Shale, wherein it is conducting production from around 900 wells.

Alta's asset base can be very much lucrative for EQT Corporation. At the end of 2020, the company had proved developed reserves of 19.8 trillion cubic feet natural gas equivalent, of which 84.5% was located in the Marcellus region. Importantly, it bolstered its core footing in the southwest Marcellus, which is expected to boost free cash flow. Hence, acquiring Alta assets will significantly ramp up EQT Corporation’s presence in this prolific region.

Now, the question remains whether EQT Corporation’s balance sheet can support the acquisition.  As of Dec 31, 2020, the company had only $18.2 million in cash and cash equivalents. In comparison, the debt load was much higher at $4,925.5 million, reflecting a stressed balance sheet. An acquisition that can cost more than $3 billion might add to that stress.

If the deal materializes, it will be added to a long list of mergers and acquisitions, which were triggered by the ongoing pandemic situation. The market downturn allowed the acquirers to buy assets at beaten-down prices. Southwestern Energy Company’s acquisition of Montage Resources, ConocoPhillips’ (COP - Free Report) Concho Resources acquisition and Pioneer Natural Resources Company’s buyout of smaller rival Parsley Energy are some of the latest purchases witnessed in U.S. shale plays.

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