Board increases share repurchase authorization to $750 million; Company plans $250 million accelerated share repurchase
Civitas Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CIVI) ("Civitas" or the "Company") today announced that its Board of Directors has authorized reinstating a capital allocation strategy prioritizing both peer-leading return of capital to shareholders and ongoing debt reduction. Future free cash flow, after paying the Company's $2 per share annual base dividend, is expected to be allocated equally to share repurchases and debt reduction on an annual basis.
In support of the capital return program, the Board increased the Company's share repurchase authorization to $750 million, which represents approximately 28% of the Company's current market capitalization. As part of the 2025 capital return, the Company plans to enter into an accelerated share repurchase ("ASR") agreement to repurchase $250 million of Civitas' equity. Inclusive of paid and planned dividends and repurchases for the year, the Company's capital return to shareholders in 2025 is estimated to be approximately 21% of its current market capitalization.
Board Chair Howard A. Willard III commented, "We have taken decisive steps to strengthen Civitas, and following these important actions, we are reinstating an aggressive capital return program to take advantage of the compelling value we see in our equity today. Through the ASR program, we are targeting a rapid repurchase of a significant quantity of the Company's outstanding shares, and we are committed to returning capital to our shareholders moving forward, with an anticipated $500 million of remaining repurchase authorization following this initial ASR."
Strategic steps taken to position Civitas for enhanced return of capital to shareholders include:
- Optimized 2025 free cash flow with a $150 million reduction in the Company's original capital expenditure plan
- Added 17 million barrels of oil hedges through the third quarter of 2026; Company is approximately 60% hedged on oil through the end of 2025 with a weighted average floor of $67 per barrel WTI
- Extended debt maturities and reduced revolving credit facility borrowings with $750 million issuance of unsecured Senior Notes due 2033
- Implemented a $100 million cost optimization and efficiency project to sustainably lower capital and operating costs and improve margins, and
- Accelerated deleveraging with non-core DJ Basin asset divestments totaling $435 million, exceeding the Company's full-year target of $300 million
With these accomplishments, net debt is anticipated to be $4.5 billion around year-end 2025, consistent with the Company's previously-communicated target.
Under the ASR agreement, the Company is expected to commence repurchases promptly, with final settlement occurring within the third quarter.
The Company will discuss its capital return program in more detail on its second quarter 2025 earnings webcast and conference call at 6:00 a.m. MT (8:00 a.m. ET) on Thursday, August 7, 2025. The webcast will be available on the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at www.civitasresources.com. The dial-in number for the call is 888-510-2535, with passcode 4872770.
About Civitas
Civitas Resources, Inc. is an independent exploration and production company focused on the acquisition, development and production of crude oil and liquids-rich natural gas from its premier assets in the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico and the DJ Basin in Colorado. Civitas' proven business model to maximize shareholder returns is focused on four key strategic pillars: generating significant free cash flow, maintaining a premier balance sheet, returning capital to shareholders, and demonstrating ESG leadership.
Information Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release concerning Civitas' future expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, financial conditions, assumptions, or future events or performance that are not historical facts are "forward-looking" statements based on assumptions currently believed to be valid. The words "anticipate," "believe," "ensure," "expect," "if," "intend," "estimate," "probable," "project," "forecasts," "predict," "outlook," "aim," "will," "could," "should," "would," "potential," "may," "might," "anticipate," "likely," "plan," "positioned," "strategy," and similar expressions or other words of similar meaning, and the negatives thereof, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Specific forward-looking statements included in this press release include statements regarding the Company's plans and commitments with respect to its capital return program and the ASR agreement. The forward-looking statements are intended to be subject to the safe harbor provided by Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, including, but not limited to: future financial condition, results of operations, strategy and plans; declines or volatility in the prices we receive for our crude oil, natural gas, and NGLs; general economic conditions, whether internationally, nationally, or in the regional and local market areas in which we do business, including any future economic downturn, the impact of continued or further inflation, disruption in the financial markets, the imposition of tariffs or trade or other economic sanctions, political instability, and the availability of credit on acceptable terms; the effects of disruption of our operations or excess supply of crude oil and natural gas and other effects of world events, and actions taken by OPEC+ as it pertains to global supply and demand of, and prices for, crude oil, natural gas, and NGLs; political conditions in or affecting other producing countries, including conflicts or hostilities in or relating to the Middle East (including the current events involving Israel and Iran), South America, and Russia (including the current events involving Russia and Ukraine), and other sustained military campaigns or acts of terrorism or sabotage and the effects therefrom; our ability to identify, select, and consummate possible additional acquisition and disposition opportunities; the ability of our customers to meet their obligations to us; our access to capital on acceptable terms; our ability to generate sufficient cash flow from operations, borrowings, or other sources to enable us to fully develop our undeveloped acreage positions and to meet our capital allocation initiatives; the presence or recoverability of estimated crude oil and natural gas reserves and the actual future sales volume rates and associated costs; uncertainties associated with estimates of proved crude oil and natural gas reserves; changes in local, state, and federal laws, regulations or policies that may affect our business or our industry (such as the effects of tax law changes, and changes in environmental, health, and safety regulation and regulations addressing climate change, and trade policy and tariffs); environmental, health, and safety risks; seasonal weather conditions as well as severe weather and other natural events caused by climate change; lease stipulations; drilling and operating risks, including the risks associated with the employment of horizontal drilling and completion techniques; our ability to acquire adequate supplies of water for drilling and completion operations; availability of oilfield equipment, services, and personnel; exploration and development risks; operational interruption of centralized crude oil and natural gas processing facilities; competition in the crude oil and natural gas industry; management's ability to execute our plans to meet our goals; our ability to attract and retain key members of our senior management and key technical employees; our ability to maintain effective internal controls; access to adequate gathering systems and pipeline take-away capacity; our ability to secure adequate processing capacity for natural gas we produce, to secure adequate transportation for crude oil, natural gas, and NGL we produce, and to sell the crude oil, natural gas, and NGL at market prices; costs and other risks associated with perfecting title for mineral rights in some of our properties; pandemics and other public health epidemics; and other economic, competitive, governmental, legislative, regulatory, geopolitical, and technological factors that may negatively impact our businesses, operations, or pricing.
Additional information concerning other factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described above can be found under Item 1A. "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis" sections in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and are based on information available at the time they were made. The Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect circumstances or events that occur after the date the forward-looking statements were made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events except as required by federal securities laws. As forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, caution should be exercised against placing undue reliance on such statements.
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Civitas Contacts
Investor Relations:
Brad Whitmarsh, 832.736.8909, [email protected]
Media:
Rich Coolidge, [email protected]