It was a “Maroon Out” at TPH as we hosted Super-Aggie and WRD Co-founder & CEO Jay Graham for his encore sit down with the firm as part of its CEO Luncheon Series (perhaps renamed Noon Yell Practice in this case?). WRD traces its legacy back to private, NGP-backed WildHorse Resources, LLC, the predecessor to publicly traded Memorial Resources, which Mr. Graham led until its merger with Range Resources in 2016. Two messages resonated with us in this current environment of general E&P investor uncertainty and skepticism – the importance of having real skin in the game (management commitments total $80 million) and, as Mr. Graham described it, “not following the puck”. The latter is exemplified by the express goal of becoming an Eagle Ford oil-levered pure play (i.e., not Permian) and initially proving that success with a sharp focus on Burleson County, Texas. While the company currently still holds North Louisiana gas-levered assets, the ultimate pure play success Jay found with Memorial suggests potential for similar single play portfolio focus with WRD. Lastly, in an energy industry undergoing technology and data science disruption, Mr. Graham’s early career history in oilfield services (HAL) and reservoir economics software development, along with working level petroleum engineering credentials, position the company well to be a nimble fast following adopter of efficiency and recovery enhancing technologies and methods.
John Gibson, Jay Graham, Mark Meyer
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