Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD) posted solid first-quarter results after the bell Wednesday, thanks to higher-than-expected energy production. Free cash flow, however, was a slight miss. It was also a bittersweet evening as CEO Scott Sheffield said he will retire at the end of the year after more than two decades collectively at the helm. Pioneer’s oil and gas revenue fell 19% year-over-year, to $3.17 billion, missing analysts’ forecasts of $3.7 billion, according to Refinitiv. But this may not be an accurate comparison as we think the analyst estimates include oil and gas plus other income items. Pioneer’s adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) declined 32.7% on an annual basis to $5.21, topping expectations of $4.91. Unlike most companies that hold their earnings conference calls with analysts and investors the day they report, Pioneer hosts its quarterly calls the next day — so Thursday at 10 a.m. ET. Bottom line Overall the quarter looks fine to us with production coming in at the high end of guidance. But, the big news was Sheffield’s retirement announcement and that Rich Dealy, the company’s President and COO, will become the new CEO on Jan. 1, 2024. After his exit, Sheffield is expected to remain on Pioneer’s board. This change in leadership is significant because it comes at a time when buyout rumors are swirling around the company. Is the company more likely to sell to Exxon Mobil (XOM) with Sheffield no longer running the show? Or does the appointment of Dealy, who brings more than 30 years of experience at Pioneer and its predecessor, mean the company is not for sale? The quick appointment of a new leader suggests no deal is coming soon. As a result, it’s not surprising to see Pioneer trading down roughly 2.5% at around $217.50 per share in after-hours trading. PXD YTD mountain Pioneer Natural Resources YTD Capital allocation Another reason for the selling pressure on the stock could be from income-oriented investors. Pioneer set its second-quarter base plus variable dividend at $3.34 a share – factoring in a base dividend of $1.25, which was raised 14% from $1.10, and a variable dividend of $2.09. On an annualized basis, the new yield moves down to 6% based on Wednesday’s closing price. A far cry from the 10% dividend yield we’ve come to know and love from Pioneer, but there’s a reason behind it. Management wants more flexibility to repurchase shares instead of paying a huge variable dividend. Buybacks are actually more valuable nowadays if you think oil prices are going higher in the future. Pioneer announced it’s refining its peer-leading capital return framework. The company continues to expect to return at least 75% of quarterly free cash flow to shareholders, but after paying the (now raised) base dividend, management will allocate what remains within the 75% to variable dividends and opportunistic share repurchases. This means that Pioneer will likely shift what previously went to the variable dividend into share buybacks. This isn’t the same explicit prioritization of buybacks over variable dividends that we saw from fellow exploration and production (E & P) company Coterra Energy (CTRA), which tilts more natural gas . But, it’s a notable change at Pioneer. Some investors may not like to lose out on the yield, but buying back stock when times are leaner instead of paying an unsustainable dividend is a more shareholder-friendly way to run the company in this tougher commodity environment. Under this new framework, Pioneer management can more easily opportunistically purchase stock when it believes there is a valuation disconnect in the market. And, it looks like Pioneer jumped on the opportunity to buy back its stock on the cheap in the first quarter. repurchasing $500 million of stock, up from $400 million in the fourth quarter, at an average price of $206 per share. That’s a nice trade with the stock closing at $222.48 on Wednesday. Pioneer also said the board authorized a new $4 billion share repurchase program. Given the $1.9 billion on its existing authorization, the news suggests Pioneer wants to more actively utilize buybacks as a tool to return capital. Management will surely be asked about the revised framework on Pioneer’s conference call and discuss what other trends they are seeing. Check your email inboxes for any significant updates. Pioneer’s total Q1 production of 680,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (MBoe/d) and oil production of 361,000 barrels per day beat estimates, topped the year-ago period and came in at the high end of management’s original guidance. That’s a positive outcome given the company’s is oil-weighted and crude offers a much higher profit margin than natural gas. Notably, Pioneer doesn’t hedge its oil production, making its realized pricing closer to that of the underlying commodity. Second-quarter guidance provided by Pioneer looked solid from our vantage point and relative to analyst estimates of FactSet. Total Q2 production is estimated between 674,000 and 702,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, which at the midpoint exceeds forecasts of nearly 681,000. Oil production is forecast between 357,000 to 372,000 barrels per day, which at the midpoint tops estimates of 364,000. Pioneer made no changes to its full-year 2023 production or capital budget outlook. (Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust is long PXD, 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.
Scott Sheffield, CEO of Pioneer Natural Resources.
Adam Jeffery | CNBC
Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD) posted solid first-quarter results after the bell Wednesday, thanks to higher-than-expected energy production. Free cash flow, however, was a slight miss. It was also a bittersweet evening as CEO Scott Sheffield said he will retire at the end of the year after more than two decades collectively at the helm.
With 615 horsepower, the Cadillac Lyriq-V is the quickest Caddie to date. Cadillac’s first V-Series EV will outsprint a CT5-V Blackwing, and it can be yours for under $80,000.
The 2026 Lyriq-V EV is the fastest Cadillac ever
We knew it was coming soon. Cadillac teased the Lyriq-V for the first time in late October, giving a sneak peek at its first electric V-Series vehicle.
Cadillac’s performance brand is known for iconic sports cars like the CT5-V Blackwing, but the new EV pushes the “V-Series sub-brand to new heights,” boasted John Roth, vice president of Global Cadillac.
As the first EV to wear the V-Series badge, Cadillac promised the Lyriq-V would be powerful, but we didn’t know it would be this fast.
Cadillac officially introduced the 2026 Lyriq-V on Thursday, revealing additional specs, prices, and more. With an estimated 615 hp and 650 lb-ft of torque and a standard dual motor AWD powertrain, the EV is expected to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.3 seconds, making it the quickest Cadillac to date.
At that speed, it would outrun the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing with a 0 to 60 mph sprint time in 3.4 seconds. Although the CT-5 packs slightly more horsepower (668 hp), the Lyriq-V’s EV powertrain unlocks more powerful, instant acceleration.
The added power is enabled by an added Velocity Max feature, which “unleashes the vehicle’s full performance capability” with a surge of power and acceleration.
Interior and exterior design, prices, and features
The V-Series model differs from the traditional Lyriq with a lower center of gravity and custom front and rear bumpers. It also features V-Series badging on the rear doors and tailgate, V-pattern mesh on the lower grille, and 22″ wheels with the logo etched into the side.
Inside, the performance EV borrows features from the Lyriq, such as a panoramic fixed glass roof, a 23-speaker AKG sound system, and a massive 33″ LED display screen.
Cadillac distinguishes the V-Series from the traditional Lyriq by adding the V-Series logo, a V-mode button, and a sports rim with hand grips. Other unique features include a custom infotainment experience with a “V-Series persona,” a signature V-Series illuminated sill plate and V-pattern detailing on the seatbacks.
A 102 kWh battery pack is expected to provide a range of up to 285 miles. The 2026 Cadillac Lyriq-V starts at $79,990, including the destination fee.
In comparison, the Tesla Model Y Performance starts at $51,490 and has an EPA-estimated range of up to 277 miles. It also includes AWD and can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds.
Cadillac’s new performance EV will be sold in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Other markets will be announced closer to launch. GM will begin producing the new Lyriq-V at its Spring Hill, TN, manufacturing plant in early 2025.
What do you think of the Cadillac’s new performance EV? Would you buy one for $80,000? Or are you sticking with the Model Y Performance? Drop us a comment below to let us know.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links.More.
U.S. President Donald Trump makes a virtual address to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
President Donald Trump said Thursday he will approve the construction of power plants for artificial intelligence through an emergency declaration.
“We’re going to build electric generating facilities. I’m going to get the approval under emergency declaration. I can get the approvals done myself without having to go through years of waiting,” Trump said in a virtual address to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
“They can fuel it with anything they want, and they may have coal as a backup,” he said of the plants.
The president declared a national energy emergency on Monday, directing federal agencies to use whatever emergency authorities they have at their disposal to expedite energy infrastructure projects.
Power demand from artificial intelligence data centers is forecast to surge in the coming years. The tech companies building the centers that support AI have primarily focused on procuring renewable energy to meet their climate goals, though they have shown a growing interest in nuclear power to meet their growing energy needs.
While the tech sector has focused on carbon-free power to meet their climate goals, analysts believe natural gas will play a pivotal role in powering AI because it’s in plentiful supply, is more reliable than renewables and can be deployed much faster than nuclear.
Trump said he wants power plants to connect directly to data centers rather than supplying electricity through the grid.
“You don’t have to hook into the grid, which is old and could be taken out,” Trump said. This setup, called co-location, has faced opposition from some utilities who are worried about losing fees and have warned taking power off the grid could lead to supply shortages.
Tesla has announced some important price hikes across its entire lineup in Canada amid incentives going away and a struggling Canadian dollar.
The Canadian EV market is already having problems amid announcements that the federal incentive program will be eliminated. The same thing is happening to Quebec’s own program, which was the most generous in the country—making the province the leader in EV adoption in Canada.
Now, Tesla, which sells more EVs than anyone in Canada, announced that it is increasing prices on all its lineup.
Here are the price increases for each Tesla model:
Model 3:
Long Range RWD: $4,000
Long Range AWD: $8,000
Performance: $9,000
Model Y: $4,000
Model S: $4,000
Model X: $4,000
Buyers can still get $1,300 CAD off of new Model Y, Model S, or Model X purchases with a referral code.
Tesla never comments on price changes and therefore, we don’t know the official reasons for these specific price increases, but we can make some educated guesses.
First off, the Canadian dollar has crashed in comparison to USD over the last few months:
Furthermore, the timing of announcing that the price increases will take place on February 1st has led some to link this to the upcoming tariff wars that President Trump signaled against Canada.
The US President said that he plans to impose 25% tariffs on any goods coming from Canada, and Canada said that it would retaliate.
Electrek’s Take
Obviously, this is not good for the EV market in Canada.
The removal of incentives is already hurting the market, and now the base price of the most popular EVs in the country, Tesla vehicles, is also going up before incentives.
This will be a bad year for EVs in Canada.
Hopefully, things will settle down and we will get more clarity once the tariff war actually starts.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links.More.