CRGY

Looking for a stock that has been consistently beating earnings estimates and might be well positioned to keep the streak alive in its next quarterly report? Crescent Energy (CRGY), which belongs to the Zacks Alternative Energy - Other industry, could be a great candidate to consider. This oil and gas company has an established record of topping earnings estimates, especially when looking at the previous two reports. The company boasts an average surprise for the past two quarters of 26.42%. For the last reported quarter, Crescent Energy came out with earnings of $0.69 per share versus the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.59 per share, representing a surprise of 16.95%. For the previous quarter, the company was expected to post earnings of $0.39 per share and it actually produced earnings of $0.53 per share, delivering a surprise of 35.90%. Thanks in part to this history, there has been a favorable change in earnings estimates for Crescent Energy lately. In fact, the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) for the stock is positive, which is a great indicator of an earnings beat, particularly when combined with its solid Zacks Rank. Our research shows that stocks with the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better produce a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time. In other words, if you have 10 stocks with this combination, the number of stocks that beat the consensus estimate could be as high as seven. The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter; the Most Accurate Estimate is a version of the Zacks Consensus whose definition is related to change. The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information, which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier. Crescent Energy currently has an Earnings ESP of +11.44%, which suggests that analysts have recently become bullish on the company's earnings prospects. This positive Earnings ESP when combined with the stock's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) indicates that another beat is possibly around the corner. Investors should note, however, that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss, but a negative value does reduce the predictive power of this metric. Many companies end up beating the consensus EPS estimate, but that may not be the sole basis for their stocks moving higher. On the other hand, some stocks may hold their ground even if they end up missing the consensus estimate. Because of this, it's really important to check a company's Earnings ESP ahead of its quarterly release to increase the odds of success. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Crescent Energy Company (CRGY) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Crescent Energy has delivered a strong year to date share price gain, which naturally puts a spotlight on whether the current market value lines up with what its earnings can support. With the stock now trading at US$12.89, the question for investors is how that move squares with the profit power of the underlying business. - The share price is up 51.5% year to date, which puts more weight on the question of whether Crescent Energy's earnings can carry that kind of move. - The business model is closely tied to converting commodity production into steady profit and cash flow, so the quality and resilience of those earnings may matter more now that the valuation has risen. - There is a second opinion on Crescent Energy worth weighing. See what analysts think Crescent Energy's shares could be worth. For investors, the debate is whether Crescent Energy's recent share price level is justified by the earnings the company is currently generating and can sustain. If you are weighing Crescent Energy against other opportunities that also turn earnings power into the key filter, a focused screen built around 32 high quality undervalued stocks can be a useful next step. The P/E ratio is a way to see what investors are paying today for each dollar of Crescent Energy's earnings. On this yardstick, Crescent Energy trades on a P/E of about 77.8x, compared with an Oil and Gas industry average of 12.5x and a peer group around 7.5x. That is a very steep step up from both the sector and similar companies that investors often use as reference points. The fair value model, which adjusts the P/E you might expect for Crescent Energy based on its own growth profile, margins, size and risk characteristics, flags the current multiple as overvalued and very stretched on this framework. The gap suggests the model is heavily penalising the business for its recent financial profile, so the headline P/E looks more like a warning signal than a level that can be anchored easily to fundamentals. For anyone considering the stock, the key question is whether Crescent Energy's earnings quality and future profit power justify paying this kind of premium on reported profits. Explore the numbers behind Crescent Energy's P/E valuation. Narratives on Crescent Energy pick up where the high P/E puzzle leaves off by spelling out which paths for growth, margins and earnings would need to play out for the current share price to look materially too low or too high. Each Narrative presents Crescent Energy's implied worth as a concrete, testable idea about the business that you can keep revisiting over time, and these sit on Simply Wall St's Community page. Community views on Crescent Energy split between those who see disciplined portfolio work as underappreciated and those who worry that deal quality and inventory depth may already be fully reflected. Bull case: 19% undervalued "The company's strong balance sheet, disciplined capital allocation, and active debt reduction enhance financial stability and may lower interest expenses..." Discover why this Narrative puts Crescent Energy at 19% undervalued. Bear case: 7% overvalued "Dependency on acquisitions, commodity price exposure, high leverage, cost inflation, and persistent market skepticism create significant risks to earnings, margins, valuation, and capital access..." Explore why this Narrative puts Crescent Energy at 7% overvalued. Market multiples tell you what investors pay for Crescent Energy today. The projections from covering analysts sketch where they think earnings and cash flows might head next. Explore where analysts expect Crescent Energy to be in a few years. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include CRGY. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email [email protected]

Crescent Energy (CRGY) slipped 1.29% in the latest session to close at $12.98, lagging the broader market, as investors evaluated new earnings projections indicating higher expected EPS and revenue in the upcoming quarter. For Crescent Energy, the recent 1-day share price decline and 1-week drop sit against a much stronger backdrop, with a 90-day share price return of 32.18% and a year-to-date gain of 52.53%. The 1-year total shareholder return of 49.45% points to momentum that has been building rather than fading. Spot 32 high quality undervalued stocks that, like Crescent Energy, pair recent price momentum with analyst expectations for stronger earnings ahead. Crescent Energy has already delivered strong recent gains, yet still trades below consensus price targets and an internal value estimate. Does that tilt the risk reward toward buyers, or is optimism already reflected in the price? Crescent Energy last closed at $12.98, while the most followed narrative pegs fair value closer to $15.93, implying a sizeable valuation gap that analysts link to balance sheet work and portfolio execution. The company's strong balance sheet, disciplined capital allocation, and active debt reduction enhance financial stability and may lower interest expenses, which could increase net income and create capacity for shareholder returns (dividends/buybacks). Accelerated resource development in underexplored acreage, particularly in high-performing areas of the Uinta basin, is expanding Crescent's inventory of proven economic reserves and enhances future production potential, supporting longer-term revenue and earnings prospects. See why 16 investors see Crescent Energy as 19% undervalued. Result: Fair Value of $15.93 (UNDERVALUED) Still, the Crescent Energy story can change quickly if acquisitions underperform or if higher regulatory and environmental costs in core U.S. basins reduce future profitability. Find out about the key risks to this Crescent Energy narrative. The earlier fair value work pointed to Crescent Energy looking undervalued on cash flow and analyst targets. A simple P/E check tells a very different story. CRGY trades on a P/E of 78.3x, compared with 12.7x for the US Oil and Gas group and a fair ratio estimate of 24.3x. That gap signals investors are already paying a heavy premium versus peers and the level the fair ratio suggests the market could move toward. The question is whether future earnings delivery justifies that premium or leaves late buyers exposed if sentiment cools. See what the numbers say about this price — find out in our valuation breakdown. If the Crescent Energy story so far feels mixed, consider acting while the facts are fresh and weigh the potential upside against the concerns using 4 key rewards and 3 important warning signs. Do not stop with Crescent Energy. Broaden your watchlist now, or risk missing companies that match your goals better than the ones already on your radar. - Target undervalued opportunities with solid fundamentals by scanning our 32 high quality undervalued stocks that may align more closely with your return and risk preferences. - Strengthen your income focus by reviewing a curated set of yield ideas through the 6 dividend fortresses that can complement growth oriented positions. - Prioritize resilience in tough markets by assessing companies with stronger finances via the list of solid balance sheet and fundamentals (25 results) that could support more durable performance. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include CRGY. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email [email protected]

A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Clearway Energy (CWEN). Shares have lost about 4.2% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500. Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Clearway Energy due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts. CWEN's Q2 Earnings & Revenues Outpace Estimates, 2026 Outlook Trimmed Clearway Energy reported second-quarter 2026 earnings of $1 per share, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 24 cents by 316.7%. The bottom line also increased substantially from 25 cents reported in the year-ago quarter. Operating revenues totaled $481 million, which beat the consensus estimate of $475 million by 1.3%. The top line increased 22.7% from $392 million recorded in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted EBITDA rose 19.2% to $409 million from $343 million.Total operating costs and expenses increased 18.9% to $365 million from $307 million in the prior-year quarter.The cost of operations jumped to $149 million from $131 million. Depreciation, amortization and accretion expenses increased to $196 million from $163 million, while general and administrative expenses advanced to $15 million from $11 million.Interest expense increased 26.5% year over year to $105 million. Operating income rose 36.5% year over year to $116 million. Flexible Generation generated net income of $22 million compared to a net loss of $11 million in the prior-year quarter. However, adjusted EBITDA declined to $49 million from $52 million.Renewables & Storage reported net income of $55 million compared with $63 million a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA increased 24% to $372 million from $300 million.Corporate recorded a net loss of $47 million compared with a loss of $40 million. Its adjusted EBITDA loss widened to $12 million from $9 million. Renewables & Storage generation increased 15.5% year over year to 6.87 million megawatt-hours.Solar generation rose 28% to 3.59 million megawatt-hours, while wind generation improved 4.4% to 3.28 million megawatt-hours. Clearway Energy’s sponsor offered the company the opportunity to invest in Honeycomb Phase II, a 210-megawatt (MW) energy-storage portfolio in Utah expected to begin commercial operations in 2027. The potential corporate capital commitment is estimated at $110 million.The company also highlighted the 975 MW Chimney Canyon solar and battery-storage project in Arizona. Clearway Energy estimates that its potential investment could total roughly $350 million, subject to a future dropdown offer and approval.The company completed power purchase agreement restructurings for the Elbow Creek and Langford wind facilities. Clearway Energy had cash and cash equivalents of $251 million as of June 30, 2026 compared with $231 million as of Dec. 31, 2025.Total liquidity as of June 30, 2026 was $0.99 billion compared with $1.06 billion recorded as of Dec. 31, 2025.Long-term debt as of June 30, 2026 amounted to $8.49 billion compared with $7.9 billion as of Dec. 31, 2025.Net cash provided by operating activities in the first six months of 2026 was $615 million compared with $286 million in the year-ago period. Clearway Energy reduced its full-year 2026 cash available for distribution (CAFD) guidance to $430-$470 million from the prior range of $470-$510 million.Adjusted EBITDA is now expected between $1.39 billion and $1.43 billion, down from the previous range of $1.44-$1.48 billion. Cash from operating activities is projected between $956 million and $996 million. It turns out, estimates revision have trended downward during the past month. At this time, Clearway Energy has a great Growth Score of A, a grade with the same score on the momentum front. However, the stock was allocated a grade of C on the value side, putting it in the middle 20% for value investors. 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. Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Notably, Clearway Energy has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months. Clearway Energy is part of the Zacks Alternative Energy - Other industry. Over the past month, Crescent Energy (CRGY), a stock from the same industry, has gained 23.2%. The company reported its results for the quarter ended June 2026 more than a month ago. Crescent Energy reported revenues of $1.39 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +55.3%. EPS of $0.69 for the same period compares with $0.43 a year ago. For the current quarter, Crescent Energy is expected to post earnings of $0.59 per share, indicating a change of +68.6% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed +6.8% over the last 30 days. Crescent Energy has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) based on the overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions. Additionally, the stock has a VGM Score of A. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Clearway Energy, Inc. (CWEN) : Free Stock Analysis Report Crescent Energy Company (CRGY) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Crescent Energy (CRGY). Shares have added about 24.7% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500. But investors have to be wondering, will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Crescent Energy due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at its latest earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers. Crescent Energy Company reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of 69 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 59 cents by 16.95%. The bottom line also increased from the year-ago adjusted earnings of 43 cents. The outperformance was supported by strong production, higher oil realizations and continued operating efficiencies. The Houston, TX-based oil and gas exploration and production company’s revenues of $1.4 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.22 billion by 13.2%. The top line also increased sharply from $898 million in the year-ago quarter. The quarter was marked by solid production, lower operating costs and record cash generation. Crescent produced 335 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (MBoe/d), which beat our consensus mark of 331 MBoe/d, while adjusted operating expenses were about 9% below the prior annual guidance midpoint. Total production averaged 335 MBoe/d, up from 263 MBoe/d in the year-ago quarter. Oil production increased to 140 thousand barrels per day (MBbls/d) from 108 MBbls/d. The figure was also above our consensus estimate of 136 MBbls/d. Natural gas production rose to 715 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) from 644 MMcf/d, while NGL production increased to 76 MBbls/d from 48 MBbls/d. Natural gas production was 2.5% below our consensus estimate, while NGL production was 7.6% above our consensus estimate. During the quarter, Crescent drilled 43 gross operated wells and brought 32 gross operated wells online. Capital expenditures, excluding acquisitions, totaled $284 million. Crescent continued to make progress in the Permian, where it has moved from the stabilization phase following the acquisition into optimization. Permian production totaled 124 MBoe/d, with oil accounting for 42% of volumes. Capital spending in the basin was $104 million. Crescent drilled nine gross wells and turned 12 gross wells in line during the quarter. The company increased its Permian synergy target to $250-$300 million, roughly three times the original target of $90-$100 million. Approximately $190 million of annualized synergies have already been captured. The gains are being driven by lower well and operating costs, improved workover and artificial-lift programs, better field operations and commercial optimization. Management expects a large portion of the updated synergy target to be captured as the company exits 2026 and moves into 2027. The Eagle Ford business produced 169 MBoe/d, with oil representing 39% of volumes. Capital spending totaled $147 million. Crescent drilled 26 gross wells and brought 16 gross wells online during the quarter. Operational efficiencies remain a key driver in the basin. Well costs have declined more than 25% since 2023, while workover and artificial-lift optimization are supporting base production. CRGY is also seeing encouraging results from the Austin Chalk, which could expand its economic drilling inventory. CRGY continued to improve drilling and completion efficiency in the Uinta Basin. Year-to-date drilling efficiency increased to roughly 1,600 feet per day from about 1,300 feet in the 2025 program. Completion efficiency increased to approximately 3,000 lateral feet per day from about 1,600 feet. Simulfrac utilization reached 100% of gross wells turned in line, while drilling, completion and facilities costs declined to below $800 per foot from approximately $950 in the 2025 program. These efficiencies are helping CRGY lower development costs and improve returns across its portfolio. Oil remained the largest revenue contributor at $1.23 billion, more than doubling from $602.5 million in the year-ago quarter. The figure was also above our consensus estimate by 18.9%.Natural gas revenues declined to $33.8 million from $159 million, while NGL revenues increased to $129.4 million from $98.1 million. Midstream and other revenues totaled $5 million compared with $38.4 million a year earlier.  Natural gas revenues declined 61.2%, and NGL revenues declined 5.8%, while Midstream and other revenues declined 17% compared with our consensus estimates. Average realized oil prices before derivative settlements were $96.61 per barrel, up significantly from $61.47 a year ago. Natural gas realizations, however, declined to 52 cents per Mcf from $2.71. NGL prices fell to $18.67 per barrel from $22.59. The company's total realized price before derivative settlements increased to $45.63 per Boe from $35.96 a year ago. CRGY generated record adjusted EBITDAX of $798 million, up from $513.9 million in the year-ago quarter. Levered free cash flow reached a record $418 million, while operating cash flow totaled a record $707 million. The company ended June with approximately $2.2 billion of liquidity. Total debt was approximately $5.17 billion, while net debt stood at $4.9 billion. Consolidated net leverage was 1.6 times. CRGY further strengthened its balance sheet in July by redeeming the remaining $259 million of its 7.75% senior notes due 2029 at par. The transaction reduced interest expense and eliminated the company's nearest debt maturity. Pro forma liquidity following the redemption was expected to remain around $2 billion. CRGY's board of directors declared a fixed quarterly dividend of 12 cents per share. As of June 30, CRGY had approximately $336 million remaining under its share-repurchase authorization. The minerals and royalties business produced 13 MBoe/d, more than doubling from 6 MBoe/d in the prior-year quarter. Oil production from the business increased to 6 MBbls/d from 2 MBbls/d. Average realized prices before derivatives totaled $51.45 per Boe, compared with $34.95 a year earlier. Operating expenses were $4.26 per Boe compared with $5.40 in the prior-year period.  The business generated $49.4 million of adjusted EBITDAX during the quarter compared with $15.9 million a year earlier. The company raised its 2026 total production guidance to 327-335 MBoe/d from 320-335 MBoe/d. The expected oil mix remains 40-42%. The company lowered adjusted operating expense guidance to $11-$12 per Boe from $11.50-$12.50. Production tax guidance was reduced to 5-6% of commodity revenues from 6-7%. Crescent maintained its development capital guidance at $1.325-$1.425 billion, despite the higher production outlook. The combination of increased volumes and lower operating costs is expected to support additional free cash flow. At current commodity prices, management expects to generate more than $1 billion of levered free cash flow in 2026. Crescent intends to use its financial flexibility to maintain the dividend, reduce debt and pursue accretive acquisitions or opportunistic share repurchases. It turns out, estimates review have trended upward during the past month. The consensus estimate has shifted 12.5% due to these changes. At this time, Crescent Energy has a strong Growth Score of A, though it is lagging a lot on the Momentum Score front with a C. However, the stock was allocated a grade of A on the value side, putting it in the top 20% for value investors. 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. Estimates have been trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Interestingly, Crescent Energy has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months. Crescent Energy belongs to the Zacks Alternative Energy - Other industry. Another stock from the same industry, Expand Energy (EXE), has gained 7.4% over the past month. More than a month has passed since the company reported results for the quarter ended June 2026. Expand Energy reported revenues of $1.83 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of -9.5%. EPS of $1.33 for the same period compares with $1.10 a year ago. Expand Energy is expected to post earnings of $1.41 per share for the current quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +45.4%. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed -4.4%. Expand Energy has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) based on the overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions. Additionally, the stock has a VGM Score of B. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Crescent Energy Company (CRGY) : Free Stock Analysis Report Expand Energy Corporation (EXE) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Image source: The Motley Fool. Monday, Aug. 3, 2026 at 8:00 a.m. ET Investor Relations - Reid Gallagher Chief Executive Officer - David Rockecharlie Chief Financial Officer - Brandi Kendall Chief Operating Officer - Jerome Hall Executive Vice President of Investments - John Rynd Operator: Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us, and welcome to Crescent Energy Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] I will now hand the conference over to Reid Gallagher, Investor Relations. Reid, please go ahead. Unknown Executive: Good morning, and thank you for joining Crescent's Second Quarter 2026 Conference Call. Today's prepared remarks will come from our CEO, David Rockecharlie; and our CFO, Brandi Kendall. Our Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of Investments will also be available during Q&A. Today's call may contain projections and other forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, including commodity price volatility, global geopolitical conflict, our business strategies and other factors that may cause actual results to differ from those expressed or implied in these statements and our other disclosures. We have no obligation to update any forward-looking statements after today's call. In addition, today's discussion may include disclosure regarding non-GAAP financial measures. For reconciliations of historical non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures, please reference our 10-Q and earnings release available in the Investors section of our website. With that, I'll hand it over to David. David Rockecharlie: Good morning, and thank you for joining us. Crescent delivered another record quarter, and I want to begin by thanking our talented colleagues across the company for the focus and execution that made these results possible. Our year-to-date results demonstrate continued positive momentum across Crescent. Higher production, structurally lower costs and record free cash flow reinforce both the strength of the business today and the long-term value creation opportunity ahead. Our business is better than it has ever been before and recent commodity tailwinds only amplify our outperformance. As always, I want to begin with 3 key takeaways. First, consistent execution across the portfolio drove another quarter of outperformance and supports an enhanced full year outlook. Oil and total production were ahead of our full year plan and adjusted operating expense was significantly better than expectations. As a result, we are raising guidance for both total production and oil production and improving guidance for operating expense. Second, momentum continues to build in the Permian. Asset performance is improving, operational efficiencies are becoming increasingly visible and synergy capture continues to exceed expectations. We are increasing our target range once again to approximately $250 million to $300 million, roughly 3x our original synergy target at announcement. And third, our differentiated combination of operating and investing expertise delivered record quarterly free cash flow, providing meaningful flexibility to accelerate deleveraging and return capital to our investors. Let me now discuss the quarter in more detail. We produced approximately 335,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day during the quarter, including approximately 140,000 barrels of oil per day and generated a record $418 million of levered free cash flow. Total production was approximately 2% above the midpoint of our original full year guidance. Oil production was approximately 4% above the midpoint and adjusted operating expense was nearly 10% better than the midpoint. With outperformance across production and operating costs, we are increasing our full year production guidance and improving operating expense guidance, while maintaining our development capital range. In the Eagle Ford, steady efficiency gains continue to drive strong returns and consistent free cash flow. Base production and new well performance remained strong, supported by optimized workover and artificial lift programs and solid field execution. Well costs improved approximately 5% year-over-year and are now more than 25% below 2023 levels, further improving breakevens and capital efficiency across the asset. In the Permian, early results demonstrate meaningful progress with significant upside still ahead. Following the acquisition in December, we completed the initial stabilization phase by integrating the organization, rightsizing capital intensity and implementing our returns-focused operating approach. We are now firmly in the optimization phase where the Crescent investing and operating model is translating into measurable improvements in costs, efficiency and free cash flow. When we announced the Permian acquisition, we identified an initial annual synergy opportunity of $90 million to $100 million. As we transition from integration to optimization, we continue to identify additional operational infrastructure and commercial opportunities. As a result, we have captured approximately $190 million of annualized synergies to date and are increasing our total target to $250 million to $300 million, approximately 3x our original target. On a 10-year PV-10 basis, the updated synergy range represents approximately half of the original headline purchase price, underscoring the significant value we are creating through execution alone. The incremental synergy opportunity continues to come from 3 primary areas: first, operational optimization. We are improving field execution through better operational planning, workover strategy, vendor management and standardized operating practices, while reducing well costs by approximately 20% to 25% versus the prior operator and materially improving capital efficiency. Second, infrastructure optimization. We continue to improve operating costs through artificial lift and facilities optimization, equipment rationalization and proactive field surveillance, creating a structurally lower and more sustainable operating cost structure. And third, commercial optimization. We are improving marketing terms, takeaway costs and equipment contracting by implementing a more holistic commercial strategy across the asset base and leveraging the full scale of the Crescent platform. Our message today is straightforward. In the first 6 months following our Permian acquisition, Crescent is delivering better performance, lower costs and more free cash flow. Importantly, the value captured to date does not include the significant commodity tailwinds relative to our underwriting or the additional upside in our reserve base, where we see potential for expanded economic inventory, improved recoveries and future resource delineation. What we're seeing in the Permian reinforces that the Crescent investing and operating model is repeatable. We make assets better. Over many years and even more acquisitions, we have consistently increased performance, improved costs and created meaningful long-term value for our shareholders. These results are consistent with what we said at announcement that the Permian assets would look materially different under Crescent's ownership. Our track record in the Eagle Ford gives us confidence in the remaining opportunity, and we believe we're still in the early days of unlocking the full value of the assets. In the Uinta, we are applying the same proven operating playbook. Workover and artificial lift optimization are improving base production, while drilling and completion efficiencies are driving a step change in development costs. Drilling efficiency is up approximately 25% year-over-year. Completion efficiency has nearly doubled and development costs are down nearly 20% to below $800 per foot. As we built this company through acquisition, we've implemented the Crescent investing and operating model on all of our acquired assets and driven clear and significant operational improvement across our portfolio. Through more efficient and lower-cost operations and an increasing focus on our broader resource base, we see tremendous organic opportunity to meaningfully enhance and expand Crescent's inventory across all of our core basins. Our expectation is simple, both more inventory and lower breakevens. We also want to highlight that our Minerals and Royalties business continues to deliver strong performance, producing approximately 13,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day during the quarter. The business provides high-margin, capital-free exposure to organic development. And at current prices, we expect the portfolio to generate approximately $200 million of EBITDA this year. Across the portfolio, consistent execution is translating into higher production, structurally lower costs and stronger free cash flow. That operating momentum supports an enhanced outlook, both in 2026 and beyond and gives us a greater opportunity to create value through free cash flow and disciplined capital allocation. With that, I'll turn the call over to Brandi. Brandi Kendall: Thanks, David. Crescent delivered another quarter of strong financial results, generating approximately $798 million of adjusted EBITDAX and approximately $418 million of levered free cash flow. These results reflect strong operating execution and a portfolio designed to generate substantial free cash flow through cycles. Given our stronger-than-expected first half performance, we are enhancing our 2026 outlook. We are increasing full year total production guidance to 327,000 to 335,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. We are also improving our adjusted operating expense guidance by $0.50 to $11 to $12 per barrel of oil equivalent, reflecting structural improvements across field operations, workovers, procurement and infrastructure optimization. Development capital guidance remains unchanged at $1.325 billion to $1.425 billion. The combination of higher volumes and lower operating costs drive incremental free cash flow. Maintaining the capital range while raising production guidance reflects the capital efficiency gains being achieved across the portfolio. Our capital allocation framework remains consistent and focused on long-term per share value creation. First, the dividend. We declared a $0.12 per share dividend for the quarter, continuing our long history of returning cash to shareholders. Second, the balance sheet. We ended the quarter with approximately $2.2 billion of liquidity, no near-term maturities and a weighted average maturity of approximately 6 years. On July 31, we redeemed the remaining $259 million of our 2029 senior notes at par, reducing absolute debt and annual interest expense, while advancing our long-term leverage and investment-grade objectives. And third, our free cash flow provides significant flexibility. At current prices, we expect to generate more than $1 billion of levered free cash flow in 2026, giving us the ability to further reduce debt, fund accretive M&A and repurchase shares when appropriate. Our priorities remain clear: maintain the dividend, strengthen the balance sheet and allocate excess cash to the highest return opportunities available, including opportunistic share repurchases. With record quarterly free cash flow, significant liquidity and multiple avenues for value creation, Crescent is in its strongest financial position ahead. With that, I'll turn the call back to David. David Rockecharlie: Thanks, Brandi. Our year-to-date results demonstrate the continued progression of the Crescent story. We delivered strong operating results, enhanced our full year outlook and generated record free cash flow. In the Permian, stabilization is complete, optimization is underway, and we're beginning to see the benefits of the Crescent investing and operating model translate into stronger operating and financial performance. While we are pleased with the progress to date in the Permian and have delivered consistent outperformance on our Eagle Ford and Uinta assets, we believe we're still in the early stages of unlocking the full value that Crescent has to offer. We see tremendous upside across our nearly 1 million net acres to significantly enhance and expand our inventory with more locations and lower breakevens through best-in-class operations and a relentless focus on the opportunity ahead. With our outperformance demonstrating the strength and repeatability of our model and the significant upside opportunity in front of us, we believe Crescent has never been better positioned to deliver for our investors. With that, we'll open it up for Q&A. Operator? Operator: [Operator Instructions] Your first question comes from the line of Neal Dingmann with William Blair. Neal Dingmann: Very nice quarter. My first question, I think, has to be around the increased Permian synergy target, specifically. I'm just wondering how will it improve this material improvement we've seen, how will that continue to see really -- what -- I guess, David, what should that sort of translate into? I mean, obviously, it was such a material increase. Should we see the benefits of that not only this year, but well into '27? I'd just love to hear what we should see the upside there. David Rockecharlie: Yes, that's great. Thank you, Neel. Short answer is, our focus in the business is returns and free cash flow. When we made the acquisition, our expectation is we'd be able to significantly improve both over the prior operations. And early on, we had, I think, some pretty strong expectations around our initial synergy targets. And the punchline is what we've seen as we've been able to spend more time with the assets is an all of the above improvement approach. So you're starting to see those synergies show up in the financial statements. And that, at the end of the day, is better margins, better free cash flow. We'll continue to find more throughout the course of the year. And our expectation is, call it, quarterly and long-term improvement for the business. As you know, we think in terms of years, not days and months as we manage the business. The other thing I would say is that we're really just talking today about the operational improvements. So we're definitely lowering cost structure and improving free cash flow, but we think that's going to translate into a significant future around these assets and the resource that we bought and brought into the company that we think was underappreciated, and you're starting to see the potential value there. But it's pretty nice to be able to triple the expectation for run rate savings, which directly translates into long-term free cash flow. Neal Dingmann: Tremendous. And then you kind of led me into my second question. Just I couldn't help but see in the prepared remarks, you talked about a lot of the same. I think you called it your enhanced outlook. Specifically around that comment, are you referring to maybe confidence over continued free cash flow growth or continued improved well economics? Or what would you point to that best highlights this future enhanced outlook? Brandi Kendall: Neal, it's Brandi. What I'd say is all of the above. So more free cash flow, better well returns as well as to David's point, more economic inventory across the Permian. As we move throughout the course of 2026, we would expect to have realized the majority of our $250 million to $300 million of synergy target. But I think there's incremental upside as we move into 2027, in particular around cash flow generation for the business. Operator: Your next question comes from the line of Michael Furrow with Pickering Energy Partners. Michael Furrow: Congratulations on such a strong quarter. Brandi, quick one for you. Does CapEx still seem like it's going to come in at the upper end of guidance? Or do the cost reductions given to date make the midpoint seem more achievable? Brandi Kendall: Hey, Michael, I would guide you back towards the midpoint. So, the capital program is executing very well. Obviously, the second quarter was the lowest capital quarter of the year. So, we would expect to hit the midpoint of capital and for Q3, Q4 to be fairly ratable with respect to the remaining capital left to spend. Michael Furrow: Got it. That's great. Appreciate the color. And just piggybacking off the strong Permian update, I mean, particularly on the cost reductions, I'd also like to highlight, it seems like the efficiency gains and cost improvements are being realized outside the Permian as well. You're now over 90% simul-frac operations on the non-Permian assets. So, could you help us understand what other cost reduction initiatives are underway that would maybe help you continue improving well costs in both the Eagle Ford and Uinta? Jerome Hall: Hi, Michael, this is Joey. Thanks for the question and opportunity to highlight some of the great work taking place by the team. I mean it all kind of goes back to some of the same things we're working on in the synergies, and we continue to work on in our more mature Eagle Ford and Uinta assets. But at the end of the day, it's a mixed bag of letting our land operations and development planning teams work together to have longer laterals, more wells per pad. Whenever we're talking about the Permian, I'd like to continue to emphasize, don't underestimate the power slowing down. The previous operator was executing some pretty complicated pads, 18-mile pad with 12 stacked advanced trajectory wells. We're able through just better operational planning, able to do more executable strategies. Workovers is one of the areas where we've had tremendous success. We had noted that there were a lot of repeated failures and just working to see how we can minimize the number of failures or reduce the number of workovers, rightsizing the ESPs going from the biggest ESP you can put into a smaller, cheaper ESP that lasts longer, again, resulting in less workovers, scrubbing power bills and seeing how we can get our power costs down, route optimization, putting our lease operators on the locations that have the most impact. We're really developing our supply chain opportunities, gas lift compression, making sure we're fully utilizing it, combining it in some cases or eliminating it when not necessary. Chemicals is one of our biggest opportunities. We had one location where treating for H2S, we were able to reduce the chemical usage by over 50%, consolidating vendors. We had a number of vendors that we were getting our chemicals from, and we've reduced the number of vendors, generators. I mean, the list just goes on and on, on all the great work that our team is working on. If you go to the more mature asset like on Eagle Ford, you can see we reduced drilling efficiencies by 5% or increased drilling efficiencies by 5%, reduced cost by 5%. So that's not as much as the big impacts we're having in the Permian, but we're still chipping away on the more matured assets and taking chunks off the newer assets. Michael Furrow: Appreciate the comprehensive answer, Joey. It sounds like there is still lot of setting opportunities ahead. Operator: The next question comes from the line of Arun Jayaram with JPMorgan. Arun Jayaram: Arun Jayaram from JPMorgan. I wanted to get a little bit of color around the back half of this year. Kind of on a year-to-date basis, you guys have drilled about 17% more at least gross wells than you've placed under production. So, I was wondering how you think about till count of the balance of the year and perhaps maybe the trajectory of oil volumes because you have been exceeding Wall Street expectations the last couple of quarters. And maybe just any lead into how that second half makes you think about a trajectory into 2027? Sorry for the long answer question. Brandi Kendall: Arun, I'll start. So, to your point, we've had great execution across the board year-to-date. As we move into the back part of the year, we do expect both oil and total volumes to naturally decline. I would say, largely just due to the timing of the activity of tills. We are specifically in the Permian transitioning from 2-mile to 3-mile laterals, which is naturally push more completions back to the back part of the quarter. So, as we think specifically about Q3 volumes, I would expect us to be in the mid-130s range on oil. Arun Jayaram: Got it. Got it. That's helpful. And then I wanted to get -- I appreciate the color on minerals. We have seen a recent public market IPO in the mineral space. Dave, I would love to get your thoughts on your observation around that transaction from a peer and just in general, how you're thinking about potential strategic options just given the attractive valuation that the market does present on those unique assets like minerals? John Rynd: Arun, it's Clay. I'll take that. Yes. So, listen, take a step back, I think we're really excited about in the first quarter, we announced $350 million of mineral acquisitions and feel great about kind of where those assets are from a performance perspective. And obviously, the commodity helps us a bit. So really feel good about the mineral portfolio we own. And as you think about the scale and the quality of the assets at kind of $200 million of EBITDA for the year and really high-quality assets, we feel like we've got all the tools at our disposal in terms of value creation. And so certainly aware of what might not executed on. And I think part of our calculus in terms of where we go from here is how do we maximize value, both day 1 and long term for our shareholders. And so, I think that continues to be the focus, but super excited about the assets we own, how we acquired them and then performance year-to-date. Operator: Your next question comes from the line of John Freeman with Raymond James. John Freeman: Nice quarter. Just following up on Neal's question on synergies. When sort of looking at that, the increased synergy target of $250 million to $300 million versus the $190 million that you have captured to date. Can you sort of give us maybe the visibility or some rough timeline on when you think you could achieve that new target? I mean there'll be some parts of that synergy drivers that seem like things that could happen pretty quickly and others that maybe take a little bit longer to occur like marketing. But just any additional color on maybe from a timeline perspective. Brandi Kendall: Hi, John, it's Brandi. I would expect as we exit 2026 and move into 2027 that we've captured the large portion of the $250 million to $300 million. John Freeman: Perfect. And then just following up on Arun's question on the minerals. Maybe, Clay, when you look at how you've built the minerals business the past couple of years and with your minerals kind of spread across a handful of different basins, is the strategy going forward, are you sort of like, I don't know, basin kind of agnostic between where you've got it? Are you trying to like buy minerals in areas underneath where -- around where Crescent operates? Just maybe a little bit more color on sort of maybe how you think about the strategy going forward on the M&A side? John Rynd: Yes, John, listen, I think David said it out of the jump on the call. I think we're always going to be kind of free cash flow returns oriented as our North Star. So, I mean that's going to be the driver. As I think about where we expect we will be most competitive and where we see our opportunity to win, I think naturally, it's going to be in and around the assets we own today, where we have a clear view on performance and value. So, I would certainly expect that as you see us grow the business, you'd see it in logical places consistent with our portfolio and where you're seeing kind of our ability to perform, give us an advantage and an ability to kind of drive differentiated returns. Operator: Your next question comes from the line of Oliver Huang with TPH Research. Hsu-Lei Huang: Congrats on the nice quarter. Maybe for my first question, any sort of early 2027 color you're able to provide at this time as to how production and CapEx levels might shake out on a run rate basis as we just think about accounting for the stronger start to the year on oil volumes, costs, synergies. It just feels like there's potential for improvement for how 2027 might be shaping up. Brandi Kendall: Yes. I would say early to give maybe too much detail on 2027. But as we've talked about on prior quarters, just with respect to longer-term maintenance for the business, we do expect '27 to be a slight decline over 2026, really as a function of us just resetting the capital intensity of the Permian assets. I would expect in particular, on oil, just given the shape of oil volumes over the course of 2026, I would expect us to more or less exit at our expected longer-term maintenance level. Hsu-Lei Huang: Okay. Makes sense. And for my second question, I just wanted to kind of hit on the resource upside. It looks like you all have taken the opportunity to call out some organic resource expansion with the Austin Chalk in the slide deck. You hit on it a couple of times in the prepared remarks, David, on the organic upside opportunity there. So, just could you speak to it in a bit more detail? Would these be incremental to the total locations you all have highlighted in the recent material? Or is that kind of shifting some of those into the low-risk bucket? David Rockecharlie: Yes. Great question and I think I'd highlight a couple of things at the start. One, kind of just following on your question about '27 guidance, I would just say, generally, the future of the company today from our perspective looks a lot better with a lot more clarity. And so what you think about first is, we've had time now to integrate the Permian assets. We also went through a very significant and important divestiture program last year that just allowed us to become a much more focused company. And we've also -- now what you're seeing in the financial statements is we're able to execute every day, as Joey talked through, and just make the business better. So to hit your question directly, we control a lot of resource, 1 million acres in really core plays in the U.S. onshore. We're finally getting a chance to invest the time and effort in a way that is much more thoughtful and planning than the businesses that we acquired and especially even ourselves going through a really high acquisition period in a lower commodity price environment. So, we're thrilled about the positions we've built and you're seeing the results in the early days of us getting the time to work on them. And the punchline is we're lowering costs. We're improving margins on the base business. We're getting more efficient on the development side, and that all lowers breakevens. So the existing inventory, as you mentioned, is going to be more profitable and have effectively lower breakevens. And then we're also getting the time now to go invest our efforts and our intellect and some dollars in trying to understand the resource potential that exists all around us in other formations. And so across the Permian, Eagle Ford and the Uinta, we see significant upside, which would not only increase locations and increase reserve and inventory life, also at lower cost. So that's the future that we're looking at. It's going to take us some time to continue to get all of that, but you're just starting to see a lot of it come through in the operating side on the financial statements and more to come as we move into the end of this year and into 2027 and beyond. Operator: Your next question comes from the line of Charles Meade with Johnson Rice. Charles Meade: Good morning, David, Brandi to the rest of the Crescent team there. David or perhaps or Clay, can you tell us what the acquisition opportunity set, what that landscape looks for you like right now? And also maybe give some thoughts on what's your current appetite and posture for more E&P acquisitions? John Rynd: Yes. Hey, Charles, it's Clay. Well, obviously, we're super excited about what we acquired over the past few years, right? You've heard a lot about the momentum in the Permian on the call today and then continued execution in the Eagle Ford. So, I think the business we've built through acquisition over the past few years, I think we're really excited about and clearly, different commodity environment where those assets were acquired versus where we're sitting in today. As we look at the market today, I think we've clearly seen some recent transactions where there were some assets that buyers felt like they needed to own. I think our strategy has tended to be more opportunistic and value-driven in terms of the assets we want to acquire and where we see opportunity. So, I think as we look at the market today versus the internal opportunity set, the bar remains high. We just see such a unique opportunity to drive value with internal value creation. But then I'd also highlight the same execution you're seeing on the Permian as we think our opportunity to win longer term. And so, I do think continued execution and continued confidence on that strategy longer term is there. But right now, pretty high bar and super excited about what our opportunity set is internally. Charles Meade: That is helpful. And then maybe that dovetails nicely into my next question. The Eagle Ford or more specifically, you -- I think it's on one of the slides, you specifically call out the encouraging Austin Chalk results. And I wonder if you could just say where in your footprint you're seeing those strong Austin Chalk results and what they are relative to, say, your baseline Eagle Ford type curves? Brandi Kendall: Charles, I mean with respect to the Chalk, we are one of the most active Chalk developers in the Eagle Ford today. And as we noted, we see a tremendous opportunity, I would say, largely on the western side of our asset base. Jerome Hall: And Charles, just from a total well perspective, it's kind of exciting to see that by the end of this year, we'll be about 50-50 on the Eagle Ford and Austin Chalk wells, which just shows our expanding optimism over Austin Chalk. And for every new successful Austin Chalk well we drill, it just increases our optimism and encourages us to continue to look across all of our acreage to see what other opportunities exist. Operator: Your next question comes from the line of Philip Jungwirth with BMO Capital Markets. Ajay Bakshani: This is Ajay Bakshani on for Phil. The Permian cost improvements have been pretty impressive this year. Wondering how the well productivity is trending across the Midland and Delaware. Is there also an improvement story here? Or is that something that is going to require more of an end-to-end Cresent design drill complete well? Jerome Hall: Yes. I think if you just look at how the program is playing out when we initially started right after we took over the asset in mid-December, we are, in essence, executing how the previous operator's plan. And I would say, largely, we're doing that through the first half of the year. So you could expect to see more of the same. And then as we go into the second half of the year and particularly into 2027, you'll start to see some of the influences of the development planning changes that we've implemented based on our review of the acreage and our team's assessment. And so the expectation should be that we could see some benefits from the changes that we'll make, both from a development planning perspective, again, the longer laterals, more pads or more wells per pad. And then any particular completion design changes that we may implement would be impactful at that point in time, too. So that's the long answer. The short answer is first half of the year, not much feathering in second half of the year and fully implemented in 2027, we should start to see the impact. Ajay Bakshani: Awesome. And for my follow-up, you guys have made significant progress on lowering Permian well costs from vital levels versus peers are already better than average in the Delaware. I was just curious how you see future progress across the Midland and any reason you couldn't close more of the gap with peers here? And what steps would you need to take in order to do that? Jerome Hall: I'll give you the simple answer. Whenever I look at the slide that we included on where the journey has gone, the expectations for me and from my team is that we will continue to progress towards the top quartile of the peer set. So, the answer is a simple yes. We expect to continue the journey and to become a top-tier operator in the Permian. Operator: Your next question comes from the line of John Abbott with Wolfe Research. John Abbott: First question is going to be on the base decline rate. The expectation is that you're going to return to 25% in 2027. Not too long ago, there was a sell-side lunch in Houston, Joey, where we had the conversation that there's opportunities to improve upon the base. I guess, can you provide us an update on where you are in terms of the opportunity to improve the base? I mean, is 25% still a good number for 2027? And then how does that base sort of decline beyond change beyond 2027? Jerome Hall: Yes, I'll start off with a simple answer to your question on, do we still have the expectation to go from 29% to 25%? The answer is yes. As to how we do that, I think it's important to emphasize, we're talking about changing the math here, not necessarily the physics. That's a whole different conversation. But we've got well over 8,000 wells between our South Texas and Permian asset. And how do we go about this, just evaluate the potential of all those wells, ask it for why is a well not producing at its potential, do the cost benefit of closing the gaps and then execute. That could simply mean potentially shutting in a well and just taking it out of the equation. But typically, it means optimizing artificial lift to tweak the production upward. Same thing on compression. A lot of times, we have some midstream constraints that we need to eliminate. And then don't underestimate the impact of technology. Once was a one-off well here and one-off well there, we're able to deploy tools across the enterprise where we can look at all 8,000 of our wells in unison and be able to make whole change or whole shift changes to a number of wells to make an immediate impact. So that's -- as we kind of go through our execution strategy of acquire assets and operating them better, that just has to be a basic skill set of ours. We have to be as good or better than anybody at it. And I would say that we're well on our way in our journey to make that happen. John Abbott: Appreciate it. And then for a follow-up question, just sort of -- given the efficiency gains that you're seeing in the Permian and the cost benefits, I guess, what are the latest thoughts on the optimal rig count longer term for the Permian? David Rockecharlie: Yes. John, it's David. I'll take that one. As you know, our sort of oil-weighted inventory generally across the company competes pretty comparably for capital. As Joey has mentioned a number of times and as we announced a year ago, our expectation was to reduce activity as we brought on new assets in the Permian. I think we're seeing the benefit of that now, and we're still in what I would call the planning and improvement stages. So there's definitely a huge amount of opportunity, and we can allocate more rigs there, but I think that will be a what I would call, evolving assessment based on the market and our kind of readiness to just move rigs around the company. But generally, we feel really good about the opportunity and the inventory in the Permian. And so there's absolutely an ability and it's in our planning scenarios to consider adding more rigs there over time. But as of now, you should assume everything is kind of steady state. Operator: Your next question comes from the line of Michael Scialla with Stephens. Michael Scialla: I wanted to see your latest thoughts on free cash flow priorities and see where you just redeemed some notes, you don't really have any near-term maturities. Your balance sheet is looking pretty strong. You've talked about aspirations to get to investment grade in the past. I guess, given that, do you stay focused on debt reduction here? Or are you willing to buy back shares at this level? Brandi Kendall: I would say no change fundamentally in how we think about capital allocation. Every dollar competes, whether that's we're repaying debt or buying back shares or drilling a well. I think in the near term, I think it's fair to assume that we're continuing to be focused on rapid deleveraging with the excess cash flow that we're generating. Michael Scialla: Okay. And I want to ask, I know you talked about your resource expansion opportunities. Have you tested any of these new zones like the Barnett, Woodford, Wolfcamp D or I guess, in the other basins, Chalk, you obviously have in the upper Cube in the Uinta. I guess, when would you anticipate we hear more about those? When would you be able to talk about what the change might be for your overall resource base there? David Rockecharlie: Yes, great question. David, the simple answer is you're starting to see that capital allocation and the results of it already. So, Austin Chalk is a place we really weren't drilling a few years ago, and now it's a very significant part of the program as we've gotten more resource development and expansion and confidence there. We will be doing similar things in the Permian over the next 6 to 12 months. And also you're seeing us following up later this year and into next year in the Uinta following on the heels of the really strong performance from the McMullin well last year, where we took some opportunity to step out further across the acreage. So, I think the resource potential is a tremendously underappreciated part of the company. But I would say in the second half of this year and into 2027, you'll start seeing a lot more from us over there. Operator: We have now reached the end of the Q&A session. I will turn the call back to David Rockecharlie, CEO, for closing remarks. David Rockecharlie: Great. Thank you all again for the support and participation in the call this quarter. Again, hopefully, what you're seeing is just the results of what I'll call a disciplined strategy, strong focus on returns, free cash flow and just building a better business. I'd like to thank everybody at Crescent who has contributed really tremendously to the results that we're continuing to deliver, and we've got a lot more ahead to do, but we feel very strongly about the performance of the company today and into the future. So, looking forward to keeping in touch in the coming quarters. Operator: This concludes today's call. Thank you for attending. You may now disconnect. Before you buy stock in Crescent Energy, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Crescent Energy wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut are built for long-term growth and could produce monster returns in the coming years. 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As with all our articles, The Motley Fool does not assume any responsibility for your use of this content, and we strongly encourage you to do your own research, including listening to the call yourself and reading the company's SEC filings. Please see our Terms and Conditions for additional details, including our Obligatory Capitalized Disclaimers of Liability. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Crescent Energy (CRGY) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript was originally published by The Motley Fool

Crescent Energy’s second quarter results reflected strong operational execution and meaningful improvements across its core basins. Management attributed the outperformance to higher oil production, significant cost reductions, and enhanced free cash flow generation, particularly following the integration of recent Permian acquisitions. CEO David Rockecharlie highlighted that “consistent execution across the portfolio drove another quarter of outperformance and supports an enhanced full year outlook,” with the company noting both production and cost targets were surpassed due to efficiency initiatives and synergy realization. Is now the time to buy CRGY? Find out in our full research report (it’s free). Revenue: $1.39 billion vs analyst estimates of $1.31 billion (55.3% year-on-year growth, 6.3% beat) Adjusted EPS: $0.69 vs analyst estimates of $0.59 (16.5% beat) Operating Margin: 41.6%, up from 8.9% in the same quarter last year Oil production per day: up 29.6% year on year Market Capitalization: $3.82 billion While we enjoy listening to the management’s commentary, our favorite part of earnings calls is the analyst questions. Those are unscripted and can often highlight topics that management teams would rather avoid or topics where the answer is complicated. Here is what has caught our attention. Neal Dingmann (William Blair) asked about the sustainability of increased Permian synergy targets. CEO David Rockecharlie responded that improvements should continue to benefit free cash flow and margins through 2027. Michael Furrow (Pickering Energy Partners) pressed on the drivers of ongoing cost reductions outside the Permian. COO Jerome Hall provided detail on operational and supply chain initiatives across the Eagle Ford and Uinta. Arun Jayaram (JPMorgan) inquired about expected oil volume trends in the second half and into 2027. CFO Brandi Kendall indicated that volumes may decline slightly in the near term, normalizing at longer-term maintenance levels by late 2026. John Freeman (Raymond James) sought clarity on the timeline for achieving the updated synergy targets. Kendall stated that most gains are expected by the end of 2026 or early 2027. Charles Meade (Johnson Rice) questioned the company’s appetite for additional M&A. EVP John Rynd replied that Crescent remains value-driven, with a high bar for new acquisitions and a focus on internal optimization. In the coming quarters, the StockStory team will closely monitor (1) the pace and magnitude of synergy realization in the Permian, (2) Crescent’s ability to expand its resource base through delineation of new formations, and (3) the company’s capital allocation decisions as it balances debt reduction, M&A, and shareholder returns. Successful execution on cost optimization and resource expansion will be key signposts for sustained performance. Crescent Energy currently trades at $11.56, up from $11.43 just before the earnings. In the wake of this quarter, is it a buy or sell? The answer lies in our full research report (it’s free for active Edge members). WHILE YOU’RE HERE: Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. The best stocks don’t just beat the market once. They do it again. And again. Robust revenue growth, rising free cash flow, returns on capital that leave their competition in the dust. The market has already rewarded these businesses. But our AI platform says the party isn’t over. Find out which 9 stocks made the cut this week — FREE. Get Our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks for Free HERE. Stocks that have made our list include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,460% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Exlservice (+271% between June 2020 and June 2025). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.

Crescent Energy Company CRGY reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of 63 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 45 cents by 40%. The bottom line also increased from the year-ago adjusted earnings of 43 cents. The outperformance was supported by strong production, higher oil realizations and continued operating efficiencies. Houston, TX-based oil and gas exploration and production company’s revenues of $1.4 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.22 billion by 14.25%. The top line also increased sharply from $898 million in the year-ago quarter. Crescent Energy Company price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Crescent Energy Company Quote The quarter was marked by solid production, lower operating costs and record cash generation. Crescent produced 335 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (MBoe/d), which beat our consensus mark of 331 MBoe/d, while adjusted operating expenses were about 9% below the prior annual guidance midpoint. Total production averaged 335 MBoe/d, up from 263 MBoe/d in the year-ago quarter. Oil production increased to 140 thousand barrels per day (MBbls/d) from 108 MBbls/d. The figure was also above our consensus estimate of 136 MBbls/d. Natural gas production rose to 715 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) from 644 MMcf/d, while NGL production increased to 76 MBbls/d from 48 MBbls/d. Natural gas production was 2.5% below our consensus estimate, while NGL production was 7.6% above our consensus estimate. During the quarter, Crescent drilled 43 gross operated wells and brought 32 gross operated wells online. Capital expenditures, excluding acquisitions, totaled $284 million. Crescent continued to make progress in the Permian, where it has moved from the stabilization phase following the acquisition into optimization. Permian production totaled 124 MBoe/d, with oil accounting for 42% of volumes. Capital spending in the basin was $104 million. Crescent drilled nine gross wells and turned 12 gross wells in line during the quarter. Importantly, the company increased its Permian synergy target to $250-$300 million, roughly three times the original target of $90-$100 million. Approximately $190 million of annualized synergies have already been captured. The gains are being driven by lower well and operating costs, improved workover and artificial-lift programs, better field operations and commercial optimization. Management expects a large portion of the updated synergy target to be captured as the company exits 2026 and moves into 2027. The Eagle Ford business produced 169 MBoe/d, with oil representing 39% of volumes. Capital spending totaled $147 million. Crescent drilled 26 gross wells and brought 16 gross wells online during the quarter. Operational efficiencies remain a key driver in the basin. Well costs have declined more than 25% since 2023, while workover and artificial-lift optimization are supporting base production. CRGY is also seeing encouraging results from the Austin Chalk, which could expand its economic drilling inventory. CRGY continued to improve drilling and completion efficiency in the Uinta Basin. Year-to-date drilling efficiency increased to roughly 1,600 feet per day from about 1,300 feet in the 2025 program. Completion efficiency increased to approximately 3,000 lateral feet per day from about 1,600 feet. Simulfrac utilization reached 100% of gross wells turned in line, while drilling, completion and facilities costs declined to below $800 per foot from approximately $950 in the 2025 program. These efficiencies are helping CRGY lower development costs and improve returns across its portfolio. Oil remained the largest revenue contributor at $1.23 billion,more than doubling from $602.5 million in the year-ago quarter. The figure was also above our consensus estimate by 18.9%.Natural gas revenues declined to $33.8 million from $159 million, while NGL revenues increased to $129.4 million from $98.1 million. Midstream and other revenues totaled $5 million compared with $38.4 million a year earlier.  Natural gas revenues declined 61.2%, and NGL revenues declined 5.8%, while Midstream and other revenues declined 17% compared with our Consensus estimates. Average realized oil prices before derivative settlements were $96.61 per barrel, up significantly from $61.47 a year ago. Natural gas realizations, however, declined to 52 cents per Mcf from $2.71. NGL prices fell to $18.67 per barrel from $22.59. The company's total realized price before derivative settlements increased to $45.63 per Boe from $35.96 a year ago. CRGY generated record adjusted EBITDAX of $798 million, up from $513.9 million in the year-ago quarter. Levered free cash flow reached a record $418 million, while operating cash flow totaled a record $707 million. The company ended June with approximately $2.2 billion of liquidity. Total debt was approximately $5.17 billion, while net debt stood at $4.9 billion. Consolidated net leverage was 1.6 times. CRGY further strengthened its balance sheet in July by redeeming the remaining $259 million of its 7.75% senior notes due 2029 at par. The transaction reduced interest expense and eliminated the company's nearest debt maturity. Pro forma liquidity following the redemption was expected to remain around $2 billion. CRGY's board of directors declared a fixed quarterly dividend of 12 cents per share. As of June 30, CRGY had approximately $336 million remaining under its share-repurchase authorization. The minerals and royalties business produced 13 MBoe/d, more than doubling from 6 MBoe/d in the prior-year quarter. Oil production from the business increased to 6 MBbls/d from 2 MBbls/d. Average realized prices before derivatives totaled $51.45 per Boe, compared with $34.95 a year earlier. Operating expenses were $4.26 per Boe compared with $5.40 in the prior-year period.  The business generated $49.4 million of adjusted EBITDAX during the quarter compared with $15.9 million a year earlier. This Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company raised its 2026 total production guidance to 327-335 MBoe/d from 320-335 MBoe/d. The expected oil mix remains 40-42%. The company lowered adjusted operating expense guidance to $11-$12 per Boe from $11.50-$12.50. Production tax guidance was reduced to 5-6% of commodity revenues from 6-7%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Importantly, Crescent maintained its development capital guidance at $1.325-$1.425 billion, despite the higher production outlook. The combination of increased volumes and lower operating costs is expected to support additional free cash flow. At current commodity prices, management expects to generate more than $1 billion of levered free cash flow in 2026. Crescent intends to use its financial flexibility to maintain the dividend, reduce debt and pursue accretive acquisitions or opportunistic share repurchases. While we have discussed CRGY’s second-quarter results in detail, let us take a look at three other key reports in this space. San Antonio, TX-based oil and gas refining and marketing service provider, Valero Energy Corporation VLO, reported second-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings of $2.28 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.73. However, the bottom line declined from the year-ago quarter’s level of $2.71. The better-than-expected quarterly results can be attributed to an increase in refining margins per barrel of throughput and lower total cost of sales. The positives were partially offset by a decline in refining throughput volumes and renewable diesel sales volumes. The company had cash and cash equivalents of $4.5 billion at the end of the second quarter. As of June 30, 2025, it had a total debt of $8.4 billion and finance-lease obligations of $2.3 billion. Houston, TX-based oil and gas equipment and services provider, Halliburton Company HAL, reported second-quarter 2025 adjusted net income of 55 cents per share, which was in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate but below the year-ago quarter’s profit of 80 cents (adjusted). The numbers reflect softer activity in the North American region, partly offset by international growth. As of June 30, 2025, the company had approximately $2 billion in cash/cash equivalents and $7.2 billion in long-term debt, representing a debt-to-capitalization ratio of 40.4. Halliburton reported second-quarter capital expenditure of $354 million, up from our projection of $338.2 million. Norway-based integrated oil and gas operator, Equinor ASA EQNR, reported second-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share of 64 cents, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 66 cents. The bottom line declined 25% from the year-ago quarter’s level of 84 cents. Weak quarterly results can be attributed to lower liquids production across major segments and reduced liquids prices. Natural declines and portfolio divestments in Nigeria and Azerbaijan also contributed to the decrease in overall production. As of June 30, 2025, the company reported $9,472 million in cash and cash equivalents. Its long-term debt was $24,505 million. During the same time, Equinor generated a negative net cash flow of $2,579 million compared with $4,022 million in the year-ago period. Equinor’s capital expenditures amounted to $3.4 billion in the second quarter. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Crescent Energy Company (CRGY) : Free Stock Analysis Report Halliburton Company (HAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report Valero Energy Corporation (VLO) : Free Stock Analysis Report Equinor ASA (EQNR) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Crescent Energy Company CRGY centered its second-quarter 2026 earnings call on higher production, lower costs and sharply expanded Permian synergies without a higher development budget. Management also tied stronger free cash flow to faster deleveraging. Attention now shifts to how quickly the savings reach results, how production trends through the second half and whether Crescent Energy-led development changes improve the 2027 setup. In the second quarter of 2026, CRGY’s adjusted EPS of $0.69 topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.59. Revenues of $1.39 billion also beat the $1.23 billion consensus, providing supporting financial context. Crescent Energy Company price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Crescent Energy Company Quote Second-quarter execution produced 335,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, including 140,000 barrels of oil per day, while levered free cash flow reached a record $418 million. CFO Brandi Kendall raised 2026 total production guidance to 327,000-335,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, also lifted oil guidance and lowered adjusted operating expense guidance to $11-$12 per barrel. Development capital remained $1.325-$1.425 billion. CEO David Rockecharlie said Crescent Energy has captured about $190 million of annualized Permian synergies and raised the target to $250-$300 million, roughly three times the original $90-$100 million range. The CEO attributed the increase to operating, infrastructure and commercial improvements. Permian well costs are about 20%-25% below the prior operator’s levels, while field planning, workovers and marketing terms continue to improve. Kendall said during Q&A that Crescent Energy expects to capture most of the new target as 2026 ends and 2027 begins. She also identified additional 2027 cash flow benefits as the savings are realized. Rockecharlie said Eagle Ford well costs improved about 5% year over year and now stand more than 25% below 2023 levels. In the Uinta, development costs fell nearly 20% to below $800 per foot. Chief operating officer Jerome Hall detailed the work behind those gains, including longer laterals, more wells per pad, better workover planning, smaller electric submersible pumps and tighter vendor consolidation. Hall also highlighted lower chemical use, compression optimization and route planning. His comments framed the savings as repeatable field-level actions rather than a single cost-cutting program. Kendall said Crescent Energy expects more than $1 billion of levered free cash flow in 2026 at current commodity prices, providing flexibility for debt reduction, acquisitions and share repurchases. Crescent Energy redeemed the remaining $259 million of its 2029 senior notes at par after the quarter. It ended June with about $2.2 billion of liquidity and declared a 12-cent quarterly dividend. When a Stephens analyst asked about capital priorities, Kendall said the near-term focus remains rapid deleveraging. She emphasized that debt repayment, repurchases and drilling must compete for each incremental dollar. A JPMorgan analyst asked about second-half production. Kendall said oil volumes should move into the mid-130,000-barrel-per-day range in the third quarter as completion timing and a shift toward three-mile Permian laterals affect the cadence. A Pickering Energy Partners analyst asked whether capital spending would land near the upper end of guidance. Kendall instead directed expectations toward the midpoint, with third- and fourth-quarter spending expected to be relatively even. A Wolfe Research analyst pressed management on the base decline rate. Hall maintained the target of reducing it from 29% to 25% in 2027 through artificial-lift optimization, compression improvements and technology across more than 8,000 wells. Rockecharlie’s closing emphasis remained on returns, free cash flow and improving acquired assets. He also pointed to resource expansion across the Permian, Eagle Ford and Uinta as a longer-term inventory opportunity. Kendall kept the priorities unchanged: protect the dividend, strengthen the balance sheet and direct excess cash toward the highest-return alternatives. The tone was confident on execution while disciplined on spending. CRGY currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), indicating a neutral near-term estimate-revision signal. Its A scores for Value and Growth, B for Momentum and A VGM Score reflect favorable characteristics across the three styles. The Style Scores complement the Zacks Rank, with the strongest historical combinations centered on Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and #2 (Buy) stocks carrying A or B scores. CRGY’s Zacks Rank can change as analysts revise estimates after the reported results. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Crescent Energy Company (CRGY) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Interested in Crescent Energy Company? Here are five stocks we like better. Record cash flow and higher guidance: Crescent Energy generated a quarterly-record $418 million in levered free cash flow and raised its 2026 production outlook to 327,000–335,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. It also lowered adjusted operating expense guidance to $11–$12 per Boe while keeping development capital guidance unchanged. Permian synergies significantly increased: The company raised its annual synergy target from the Permian acquisition to $250 million–$300 million, up from the original $90 million–$100 million estimate, with approximately $190 million already captured. Management expects most of the savings to be realized by the end of 2026 and into 2027. Deleveraging remains the priority: Crescent ended the quarter with about $2.2 billion in liquidity and redeemed its remaining $259 million of 2029 senior notes, reducing debt and interest expense. Despite potential uses including acquisitions and share repurchases, near-term excess free cash flow will primarily support rapid debt reduction. 3 Dividend Stocks Defying the Market Downturn Amid the Iran Conflict Crescent Energy (NYSE:CRGY) reported record quarterly levered free cash flow in the second quarter of 2026 and raised its full-year production outlook, citing higher volumes, lower operating costs and accelerating savings from its Permian acquisition. Chief Executive Officer David Rockecharlie said the company produced about 335,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day during the quarter, including approximately 140,000 barrels of oil per day. Crescent generated $418 million of levered free cash flow, a quarterly record, and $798 million of adjusted EBITDAX. → SpaceX’s First Earnings Report Could Decide Whether Shorts or Bulls Have Control 3 Mid-Cap Energy Firms Analysts See Moving Up to the Big Leagues “Higher production, structurally lower costs, and record free cash flow reinforce both the strength of the business today and the long-term value creation opportunity ahead,” Rockecharlie said. Management increased 2026 total production guidance to a range of 327,000 to 335,000 Mboe/d and raised oil production expectations, though it did not provide a revised numerical oil guidance range during the call. The company also improved its adjusted operating expense outlook to $11 to $12 per Boe, a $0.50-per-Boe improvement. → Why Rare Earth Processing Could Be the Real 2027 Opportunity 3 Mid-Cap Stocks Under $20 With Insider Buying and Major Upside Development capital guidance was unchanged at $1.325 billion to $1.425 billion. Chief Financial Officer Brandi Kendall said maintaining the capital range while increasing production expectations reflects capital-efficiency improvements across Crescent’s portfolio. Kendall told analysts that capital spending is expected to land near the midpoint of the annual range. While the second quarter represented the company’s lowest capital quarter of the year, spending in the third and fourth quarters is expected to be relatively even. → 3 Drone Stocks That Should Soar After the Summer Slump Management expects oil and total production to decline naturally during the second half of 2026, largely because of the timing of wells placed on production. In the Permian, Crescent is transitioning from two-mile to three-mile laterals, which is expected to move more completions later in the quarter. Kendall said third-quarter oil production is expected to be in the mid-130,000-barrel-per-day range. Crescent increased its estimated annual synergy opportunity from its December Permian acquisition to $250 million to $300 million, roughly three times the original $90 million to $100 million target announced with the deal. The company said it had captured approximately $190 million of annualized synergies to date. Rockecharlie said the company has completed the initial stabilization phase for the acquired assets and has moved into optimization. He said the savings are being driven by operational, infrastructure and commercial changes. Operational optimization: Crescent said it has reduced well costs by approximately 20% to 25% compared with the prior operator through planning, workover strategies, vendor management and standardized operating practices. Infrastructure optimization: The company cited artificial-lift and facilities improvements, equipment rationalization and field surveillance as contributors to a lower operating-cost structure. Commercial optimization: Crescent said it is improving marketing terms, takeaway costs and equipment contracting across the asset base. Kendall said Crescent expects to realize the majority of the $250 million to $300 million synergy target by the end of 2026 and into 2027. She said the company sees further upside to free cash flow generation in 2027. Chief Operating Officer Joey Hall said the company expects to see more impact from its own development planning in the latter half of 2026 and especially in 2027. During the first half, Crescent was largely executing the prior operator’s plan, he said. The company expects longer laterals, more wells per pad and potential completion-design changes to influence future well results. In the Eagle Ford, Crescent said well costs improved approximately 5% year over year and are now more than 25% below 2023 levels. The company attributed the performance to workover and artificial-lift programs, field execution and efficiency gains. In the Uinta basin, drilling efficiency improved about 25% year over year, completion efficiency nearly doubled, and development costs declined nearly 20% to less than $800 per foot, according to Rockecharlie. The company’s minerals and royalties business produced approximately 13,000 Mboe/d during the quarter. At current prices, Crescent expects the portfolio to generate about $200 million of EBITDA in 2026. Management also highlighted potential to expand its inventory and improve breakeven economics across its nearly 1 million net acres. Rockecharlie said Crescent is spending more time evaluating additional formations and resource opportunities in the Permian, Eagle Ford and Uinta. In the Eagle Ford, he said the company expects its drilling program to be approximately evenly split between Eagle Ford and Austin Chalk wells by year-end. Crescent ended the quarter with approximately $2.2 billion of liquidity, no near-term debt maturities and a weighted average debt maturity of about six years. On July 31, the company redeemed the remaining $259 million of its 2029 senior notes at par, reducing debt and annual interest expense. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share. At current commodity prices, Kendall said Crescent expects to generate more than $1 billion of levered free cash flow in 2026. While the company said its free cash flow can support debt reduction, acquisitions and share repurchases, Kendall said near-term excess cash flow is expected to remain focused on “rapid de-leveraging.” Crescent continues to evaluate acquisitions through a returns- and free-cash-flow-focused framework, but Executive Vice President of Investments Clay Rynd said the bar for additional deals remains high given the company’s internal value-creation opportunities. Crescent Energy Co (NYSE: CRGY) is an independent exploration and production company focused on the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas resources in North America. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the company's core business activities include the identification and appraisal of prospective acreage, the design and execution of drilling and completion programs, and the ongoing operation and optimization of producing wells. Crescent Energy's integrated approach emphasizes capital efficiency, reservoir quality and operational reliability to support sustainable cash flow generation over the commodity cycle. Crescent Energy's operations are concentrated in the Permian Basin, with a particular focus on the Delaware Basin's stacked pay intervals. This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected]. The article "Crescent Energy Q2 Earnings Call Highlights" was originally published by MarketBeat. View MarketBeat's top stocks for August 2026.

Our analysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here. Performance outperformance was driven by consistent execution across the portfolio, leading to higher production and structurally lower costs that exceeded full-year plan expectations. The Permian integration has transitioned from a stabilization phase to an optimization phase, where rightsizing capital intensity and implementing returns-focused operating models are yielding measurable efficiency gains. Management tripled the Permian synergy target to $250 million to $300 million, citing better-than-expected progress in operational planning, infrastructure rationalization, and commercial marketing terms. Operational improvements in the Eagle Ford and Uinta basins, including a 25% reduction in well costs since 2023 in the Eagle Ford, demonstrate the repeatability of the Crescent investing and operating model. Strategic positioning is focused on organic resource expansion across 1 million net acres, aiming to lower breakevens and expand economic inventory through technical delineation and best-in-class operations. Record quarterly levered free cash flow of $418 million was achieved by combining operating expertise with disciplined capital allocation, providing flexibility for deleveraging and shareholder returns. Full-year 2026 production guidance was increased to 327,000 to 335,000 boe/d, while adjusted operating expense guidance was improved by $0.50 per boe due to structural field improvements. Management expects to generate more than $1 billion of levered free cash flow in 2026 at current prices, prioritizing debt reduction and the maintenance of the dividend. The 2027 outlook assumes a slight production decline as the company resets Permian capital intensity to a longer-term maintenance level, with oil volumes expected to exit 2026 at maintenance rates. Future inventory expansion will focus on underappreciated formations like the Austin Chalk and potential Permian zones, with more detailed resource updates expected in late 2026 and 2027. Capital allocation remains flexible, with excess cash flow earmarked for rapid deleveraging, accretive M&A, and opportunistic share repurchases as the company pursues investment-grade objectives. The company redeemed $259 million of 2029 senior notes at par on July 31, reducing annual interest expense and advancing long-term leverage targets. Permian well costs have been reduced by approximately 20% to 25% compared to the prior operator through standardized operating practices and improved vendor management. The Minerals and Royalties business is projected to generate approximately $200 million of EBITDA in 2026, providing high-margin exposure to organic development without incremental capital requirements. Management highlighted that current synergy captures do not yet include potential upside from commodity tailwinds or expanded economic inventory from future resource delineation. Management expects the majority of the $250 million to $300 million synergy target to be realized as the company exits 2026 and moves into 2027. The improvements are 'all of the above,' encompassing better margins, free cash flow, and the identification of more economic inventory that was previously underappreciated. One stock. Nvidia-level potential. 30M+ investors trust Moby to find it first. Get the pick. Tap here. Despite raising production guidance, development capital guidance remains unchanged, with management now steering toward the midpoint of the range due to efficiency gains. Q3 and Q4 capital spending is expected to be relatively ratable following a lower-spend second quarter. Crescent aims to reduce its base decline rate from 29% to 25% by 2027 through artificial lift optimization, compression management, and deploying technology across its 8,000-well database. Management characterized this as 'changing the math' of the decline through better field management rather than changing the underlying physics of the reservoirs. Management is aware of recent public market valuations for mineral assets and is focused on maximizing value for shareholders, whether through continued ownership or other strategic options. Future mineral acquisitions will likely focus on areas in and around existing operations where the company has a clear view of performance and value. Oil and total volumes are expected to decline naturally in the second half of 2026 due to the timing of activity and a transition from 2-mile to 3-mile laterals in the Permian. This transition pushes more completions toward the end of the year, with Q3 oil volumes expected to be in the mid-130,000 barrels per day range.