Coterra Energy is cutting back on its oil drilling in response to sagging crude prices and spending more on natural gas production — but that move, announced alongside first-quarter results, is being overshadowed by some operational concerns and leading to a stock sell-off Tuesday. Revenue in the first quarter increased 33% year over year to $1.9 billion, short of the $1.97 billion consensus estimate, according to LSEG. Adjusted earnings per share of 80 cents in the three months ended March 31 matched expectations, LSEG data showed. On an annual basis, adjusted EPS increased 56.9%. Free cash flow of $663 million topped estimates of $596 million, according to FactSet. Bottom line We have long coveted Coterra’s mix of oil and natural gas assets because it gives the company flexibility to respond to inherently volatile commodity prices. Our biggest takeaway from Coterra’s late Monday release and Tuesday morning conference call: That flexibility is being put to serious use in the current unfavorable oil market. But even if we support that move in principle, some operational issues in a certain part of the company’s Texas acreage are getting a lot of attention and are likely among the biggest drivers of the steep 8.5% stock decline. CTRA YTD mountain Coterra YTD While executives did a good job explaining their plan to fix the issue on Tuesday’s earnings call — and making it clear that they do not believe it is a structural problem with the quality of inventory — we’re not in a hurry to step in and take advantage of this sell-off. Coterra is still worth owning as our only oil-and-gas play, providing a solid dividend payout, acting as a geopolitical hedge and offering some exposure to long-term trends that could drive increased natural gas demand such as artificial intelligence computing and growing U.S. exports of liquified natural gas. But in the near term, the stock may struggle to gain traction. We’re reiterating our hold-equivalent 2 rating , but lowering our price target to $28. Commentary There are three main themes from Coterra’s earnings report — and none of them really have to do with the actual first-quarter results, which, as the chart above shows, were mixed. Not that bad, but also not exceptional. 1. Macro landscape The first area of discussion is around the macro landscape and Coterra’s decision to spend less on oil. Coterra and its American oil-producing brethren are confronting a difficult setup, thanks to a steep decline in crude prices over the past month that has brought West Texas Intermediate crude , the U.S. oil benchmark, to four-year lows below $58 a barrel . At the start of April, WTI traded above $71 a barrel. There are two main reasons for the pullback: President Donald Trump ‘s intensified trade war has fueled concerns about a global economic slowdown — a bad thing for oil demand if it comes to fruition. At the same time, the group of eight oil-producing nations known as OPEC+ has announced a series of surprisingly aggressive moves to bring more supply to the market in the coming months. The most recent of those decisions was announced over the weekend. While Saudi Arabia-led OPEC+ might typically be expected to curtail output in the face of potential demand destruction, the opposite is happening. A variety of factors could be motivating OPEC+’s counterinitiative actions, including internal politics within the oil cartel, analysts say. But for our purposes here, what matters most is that anything that materially weakens the outlook for crude prices — whether it’s trade-related recession fears, OPEC+ or both — makes Coterra’s job of profitably drilling for oil harder to do. Not impossible, but the company and its peers make a whole lot more money when WTI is $75 a barrel than they do at $55. And so, the new set of facts requires them to reconsider what the best use of money is and adjust accordingly if something else is better for their investors. Coterra’s new plan to reduce oil-focused spending is a sensible one in the near term, and it is made possible by its presence in both the oil-rich Permian Basin in western Texas and Southeastern New Mexico and the natural gas-heavy Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania and other parts of the Appalachian region. Coterra also has wells in the Anadarko Basin that spans the Texas Panhandle and western Oklahoma, but its planned activity there this year is not changing. In the Permian, though, Coterra now plans to average just seven rigs in the second half of 2025, down from the 10-rig plan announced in late February. Rigs are the machinery used to drill a well. As such, its planned Permian capital investments this year are coming down by $150 million. Meanwhile, Coterra restarted activity in the Marcellus in April with two rigs, as previously projected. But the company said it now expects to keep both rigs running into the second half of the year, lifting its capital spending in the region by an additional $50 million. Another $50 million could be added to those plans if Coterra decides to keep its second rig running through year-end, though executives said that decision will be made in the third quarter. On Tuesday’s earnings call, CEO Tom Jorden said he’s hopeful that the tariff situation is resolved and the “threat of recession is lifted,” but he stressed that “we can’t run our program on hope.” “Right now, we’re relaxing slightly [on oil spending] because we’re concerned that oil prices could further weaken. I hope we’re wrong on that,” Jorden said. “But our experience tells us that when you see these events – and you see the possibility – be prepared for the worst-case scenario.” The net effect of these changes is Coterra’s total capital expenditure projections for 2025 came down by $100 million at the midpoint of its new guidance range — and yet the company’s total production guidance was actually nudged higher for the year, driven entirely by more natural gas output. Expecting more total production on less spending is a reflection of Coterra’s ability to be a capital-efficient operator. That is a positive in the short run. However, investors might be questioning what these changes mean to Coterra’s production levels in 2026 and 2027, analysts at Mizuho Securities wrote before Tuesday’s earnings call, considering last quarter the company provided three-year outlook that included annual average oil growth of at least 5%. Executives fielded a number of questions on the three-year plans, but they repeatedly said it remained intact. “We’re holding to our three-year plan as outlined with the changes that we’ve discussed in this call. We want to be really clear with everybody on that,” Jorden said. 2. Free cash flow Another big theme: Coterra’s free cash flow outlook for this year was cut by 22% to $2.1 billion — and while lower commodity price assumptions outside its control is a big driver of the revision, investors might be worried this will limit the amount of share repurchases this year, particularly if oil prices get even weaker. The company’s commitment has been to return at least half of its free cash flow to shareholders via dividend payouts and stock buybacks. But in 2025, in particular, executives have prioritized paying down debt — tied to its two Permian-focused acquisitions that closed earlier this year — over buybacks. “We still have the ability to do it all, so to speak, but to be really clear, in 2025, our priority is going to be debt repayment. We’re not going to compromise that,” CFO Shane Young said on the call. “That doesn’t mean that there’s not going to be repurchases. … But if you look at 2024, we returned 90% of cash flow to shareholders. [In 2023], we returned 76% of cash flow to shareholders. Why were we able to do that? Because we had low leverage. And we believe that having low leverage is an enabler, and we’re dead-set focused on protecting our long-term shareholder return objectives, and we think the best way to do that is to reduce debt.” 3. Operational issues The final major theme — and likely a major culprit for the stock reaction — is operational issues plaguing some of Coterra’s operations in Culberson County, Texas, which is part of the Permian. At the highest level, some of the wells in an area called Harkey were producing higher-than-normal water volumes, so the company paused development there to work through the issue. At this time, Jorden said Coterra is “pretty optimistic that this is a mechanical operation that is solvable with a combination of revised pipe design and cementing program,” rather than something strategically wrong with the land that threatens the quality of inventory. “As we currently see it, we think we’ll be back to completing and drilling these Harkey wells in months, not years,” Jorden said. 2025 guidance Here’s where Coterra’s full-year guidance stands after the numerous aforementioned revisions: Estimated discretionary cash flow of $4.3 billion based on WTI crude prices of $63 a barrel and natural gas prices of $3.70 per metric million British thermal unit, or mmbtu. That’s below Wall Street expectations of $4.62, according to FactSet, and previous guidance of $5 billion, which factored in higher prices for both commodities. Estimated free cash flow of $2.1 billion based on the commodity price assumptions used in the discretionary cash flow guide. That is down from $2.7 billion previously. Estimated capital expenditure budget of $2 billion to $2.3 billion, down by $100 million on both ends of the range. That results in a new midpoint of $2.15 billion compared with the prior guide of $2.25 billion. Seven rigs in operation in the Permian in the second half of the year, lower than the previous plan to operate 10 rigs. Expected 2025 total equivalent production of 720 to 770 Mboe/d. The 745 midpoint of the range — up from 740 in its previous guidance — is slightly below the FactSet consensus forecast of 757 Mboe/d, which stands for total oil equivalent of a thousand barrels per day. Expected oil production in the range of 155 to 165 Mbo/d, which stands for a thousand of barrels of oil per day. The midpoint of the range is unchanged at 160 Mbo/d, despite modestly lowering the top end of the range and slightly increasing the bottom end. The FactSet consensus is for 163.6 Mbo/d. Expected natural gas production in the range of 2,725 to 2,875 MMcf/d, resulting in a new midpoint of 2,800, up from 2,775. That is below the consensus of 2,837 MMcf/d, according to FactSet. (Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust is long CTRA. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust’s portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.
An oil pumpjack is shown near the Callon Petroleum vicinity on March 27, 2024 in Monahans, Texas.
Brandon Bell | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Coterra Energy is cutting back on its oil drilling in response to sagging crude prices and spending more on natural gas production — but that move, announced alongside first-quarter results, is being overshadowed by some operational concerns and leading to a stock sell-off Tuesday.
Indian ag and automaker Mahindra has launched a limited-run Batman Edition of its BE 6 Electric Origin SUV, calling it, “a production car that brings to life a rare fusion of cinematic heritage and modern luxury, inspired by Christopher Nolan’s critically acclaimed The Dark Knight Trilogy from Warner Bros. Pictures.”
And, you guys – the new Mahindra BE 6 is. So. Serious.
Someone at Mahindra is very taken with American culture it seems. After launching the Willys MB Jeep-inspired Mahindra Roxor a few years ago, the company followed it up by building a credible line of EVs co-developed with VW. Now, they’re building a limited edition of one of those EVs inspired by another American cultural icon.
“Batman is more than a pop-culture icon — he represents innovation, resilience, and an unyielding drive to push boundaries,” says Vikram Sharma, Senior Vice President, Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products, APAC. “This collaboration brings that spirit to the road in a bold, electric way. With this limited-edition range, fans in India can now experience the thrill of Batman every time they drive. It’s a collector’s statement on wheels.”
Pinstripe graphic and The Dark Knight Trilogy Bat Emblem across the passenger dashboard panel
Race car inspired open straps with Batman Edition Branding Batman Edition welcome animation on the infotainment display
Custom Batman inspired exterior engine sounds
Despite all the Batman branding, the end result is almost tasteful. I could do without the custom Batman decal on the front quarter panels, but the rest of the mods are far less offensive. I even like the little “Bat Signal” puddle lights on the wing mirrors.
Mahindra Batman BE 6
As a car, the special edition Batman Mahindra is based on the top-shelf version of the BE 6, fitted with a 79 kWh battery good for 550 km (about 340 miles) of range according to its WLTP rating. That battery sends power to a rear-mounted 282 hp (210 kW / 286 PS) electric motor generating and 380 Nm (about 280 lb-ft) of torque that sends power to the rear wheels.
The BE6 also features a modern Level 2 ADAS tech and screens everywhere, including in the steering wheel hub – which seems like it might get particularly nasty in an airbag deployment (but no one asked me).
Pricing starts at ₹27.79 lakh (a little under $27,500, as I type this), and production will be limited to just 300 units. Order books are set to open 23AUG.
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Electric bike and scooter safety is now part of the curriculum in some schools – and surprisingly, it’s happening in Florida.
Yes, Florida. The state that’s better known for keeping education out of schools, banning everything from books to the word “gay.” But now, a Central Florida nonprofit is stepping in to make sure students are at least learning how to ride responsibly.
The group Best Foot Forward for Pedestrian Safety has partnered with local police departments and Orange County Public Schools to bring e-bike and e-scooter safety programs directly into middle schools and high schools. The initiative is focused on addressing the growing number of crashes and injuries involving students riding electric two-wheelers.
The safety course covers basics like wearing helmets, obeying traffic laws, and making yourself visible to drivers — skills that are important for the many young riders who are increasingly taking to electric bikes as a form of independent transportation around their cities and neighborhoods. One of the main topics of the program is said to be speed management. The program addresses the importance of keeping speeds reasonable and the impacts of faster riding.
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Like much of the US, Florida has seen a surge in e-bike and e-scooter popularity among kids and teens, especially in suburban and coastal areas. While many embrace them as a fun and fast way to get around, the sudden rise has also come with a worrying spike in injuries and deaths, prompting calls for improvements in both infrastructure and education.
With e-bike usage exploding across the US, more schools and communities are exploring steps to increase rider education. It’s a sign that America’s transportation habits are changing – and our education systems are beginning to catch up.
Electrek’s Take
I think programs like this are great because they teach kids things that they’d otherwise have to learn through trial and error. We don’t just hand cars to sixteen-year-olds and say, “figure it out.” So it follows that some form of organized rider education would be important as more youths take to e-bikes than ever before.
In cycling-intensive cities in Europe, all schools teach kids to ride bikes, often giving the kids some form of cute little cycling diploma to demonstrate that they’ve passed the course and can safely ride a bike.
But at the same time, this makes me wonder if we’re still missing the point. Responding to an increase in e-bike rider deaths with lessons about bicycle speed management is a bit like responding to mass shootings by lecturing innocent passersby about why they shouldn’t run into bullets.
Educating riders is always great and I’ll always support it. But in parallel, perhaps we should also be addressing the root cause of all of these tragics deaths. At the end of the day, most electric bike-related deaths aren’t a result of an e-bike rider doing too much fast riding; they’re a result of a car driver doing too much running over a cyclist.
That viral Tik Tok video showing a “self driving” Ford Mustang Mach-E scraping its way down the highway with a helpless passenger behind the steering wheel praying for his life? California Highway Patrol says the car wasn’t driving itself during the viral highway crash and arrested the driver on suspicion of driving under the influence.
If you have’t seen the video, posted by TikToker Marty Byrde, it shows a self-driving Ford Mustang Mach-E driving down the road, grinding itself against the highway’s concrete Jersey barriers, with the driver behind the wheel, seemingly helpless and afraid and trapped inside an out-of-control vehicle, apparently praying for his life.
There, in a single video, was everyone’s worst fear in an age of electric steering, brake-by-wire, and self-driving cars: a car that loses its mind, killing you and everyone you love and probably a busload of orphans for good measure. (!)
But, thankfully, that doesn’t seem to be what actually happened. At least, not according to the California Highway Patrol (CHP) in Redwood City.
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In case it vanishes, the CHP press release does a good job of explaining the situation as it stands, while emphasizing that any short-form video content is going to lack potentially needed context before the public begins to panic about a Maximum Overdrive sort of scenario.
The preliminary investigation indicates the driver of a green Ford Mustang Mach E, crashed into a red Mitsubishi Mirage then collided with the right shoulder wall near the Holly Street overcrossing. Through our investigation, we determined the vehicle was not operating in autonomous mode and CHP officers arrested the driver on suspicion of driving under the influence, resulting in injuries to another.
While we understand public interest in such incidents, video clips may not capture the complete context or investigative process. The CHP conducts each investigation thoroughly, professionally, and in accordance with the law. We thank the community for its concern and remind motorist to report dangerous driving by calling 9-1-1.
The video was especially surprising given Ford’s BlueCruise excellent track record. The system is good enough, in fact, to have been named the top active driver assistance system (ADAS) by Consumer Reports, surpassing rivals such as GM’s Super Cruise and Tesla’s Autopilot in a comparison test of similar OEM ADAS systems.
The original Tik Toker who recorded the now viral video (I hate that phrase, too, but millions of people have seen it by now) reported that no one seemed hurt in the ensuing accident. Coupled with CHP’s confirmation that the Mach-E wasn’t driving itself during the accident, I’d say that walking out of a hands-free, highway speed crash is as good an endorsement as any … but in case you need another one, this one went 250,000 miles and still had 92% of its battery life left.
Ford is currently offering 0% interest financing for up to 72 months for well-qualified buyers, as well as $1,000 in retail bonus cash in some markets.
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Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.
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