Shale producer Continental Resources (NYSE:CLR) said on Tuesday it has received an all-cash buyout proposal from billionaire-founder Harold Hamm’s family trust, which valued the company at $25.41 billion.
The Hamm family holds about 83% of the total outstanding shares of the company’s common stock. The proposal of $70 per share represents about 9% premium over Continental’s last closing price.
Continental shares rose 6.5% to $68.70 in pre-market trading following the disclosure of the offer, which comes as oil prices hit triple digits after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The conflict has disrupted the supply chain at a time when fuel demand is rising on the resumption of global travel.
Continental said its board has not yet had the chance to review the offer and would form a special committee of directors unrelated to the Hamm family to consider the proposal.
If the independent committee rejects the proposal, the Hamm family will continue as long-term shareholders and would not push for any strategic options, according to the offer letter published by Continental.
Based in Oklahoma City, Continental is the largest leaseholder and the largest producer in the nation's premier oil field, the Bakken play of North Dakota and Montana. Continental is also the largest producer in the Anadarko Basin of Oklahoma and has newly acquired positions in the Powder River Bain of Wyoming and Permian Basin of Texas.
CLR popped $9.13, or 14.2%, in the first hour of trade on Tuesday to $73.63.
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