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Newfield (NFX) Down 8.6% Since Earnings Report: Can It Rebound?

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A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Newfield Exploration Company . Shares have lost about 8.6% in that time frame, underperforming the market.

Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to the stock's next earnings release, or is it due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.

Newfield Beats Q1 Earnings, Misses Revenue Estimates

Newfield reported adjusted first-quarter 2017 earnings of $0.57 per share that beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.45. The bottom line also compared favorably with the year-ago quarter loss of $0.09 per share. Higher realizations for oil and gas prices primarily led to the outperformance.  

The company’s total revenue improved from $284 million in the year-ago period to $417 million. However, the top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $425 million due to lower production.   

Operational Performance

During the quarter, total production was 13.1 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMBoe), comprising 43% oil, 19% natural gas liquids (NGLs) and 38% natural gas. The company had recorded total production of 15.2 MMBoe in the year-ago quarter.   

Natural gas volumes totaled 30.3 billion cubic feet. Oil, condensate and NGL volumes was 8.1 million barrels.

Newfield’s first-quarter oil and natural gas price realizations averaged $33.55 per barrel of oil equivalent as against $24.46 per barrel in the year-ago quarter.

Natural gas prices were $2.72 per thousand cubic feet, oil prices were $51.38 per barrel and NGLs prices were $27.03 per barrel.

Financials

At the end of the quarter, Newfield had cash balance of $469 million. Long-term debt was $2,432 million. Debt-to-capitalization ratio was approximately 68.9%.    

Guidance

For 2017, Newfield estimates output of 149.4–160.8 MBoe/d compared with the previous guidance of 148.2–151.5 MBoe/d. For the second quarter, the company expects production of 142.6–149.1 MBoe/d.

Also, the company raised its 2017 capital spending guidance to $1.1 billion from the initial projection of $1 billion.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

Following the release, investors have witnessed an upward trend in fresh estimates. There have been five revisions higher for the current quarter compared to two lower.

VGM Scores

At this time, Newfield's stock has a great Growth Score of 'A', a grade with the same score on the momentum front. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of 'B' on the value side, putting it in the second quintile for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of 'A'. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Based on our scores, the stock is more suitable for growth and momentum investors than value investors.

Outlook

Estimates have been trending upward for the stock. The magnitude of these revisions also looks promising. Notably, the stock has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We are expecting an inline return from the stock in the next few months.

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