Antero Resources Q3 Profit Surges 382% to $367 Million on Record 4.23 Bcfe/d Production

Antero Resources posted third-quarter net income of $367 million, up 382% from $76 million a year earlier, as record production and lower operating costs offset weaker natural gas prices, the Denver-based producer said Wednesday. Diluted earnings per share rose to $1.19 from $0.24, and revenue climbed 29% to $1.56 billion. Natural gas equivalent output reached a company record 4.23 billion cubic feet per day, up 23% year-over-year, including about 2.9 Bcf/d of gas and 222,000 barrels per day of liquids. Adjusted EBITDAX nearly doubled to $634 million, adjusted free cash flow jumped 137% to $215 million, and operating cash flow totaled $575 million. Operating costs fell 16% to $2.05 per Mcfe, below guidance, helping offset a realized pre-hedge gas price of $2.63 per thousand cubic feet, down from $3.12. Antero repurchased about $56 million of shares, leaving $821 million on its buyback authorization, and guided fourth-quarter output near 4.3 Bcfe/d despite anticipated curtailments of 15 billion to 20 billion cubic feet equivalent tied to weak regional pricing.