Chaparral Energy Inc., an operator in Oklahoma’s Stack Play, regained compliance with the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Jan. 13 after trading of the company’s stock fell below listing standards late last year.

Founded in 1988, Chaparral is a pure-play operator focused in Oklahoma’s Stack/Merge Play, where it has roughly 129,000 net acres primarily in Kingfisher, Canadian and Garfield counties.

Trading of Chaparral’s common stock last year continued to deteriorate despite already seeing an 80% decrease in share price in 2018. By Nov. 15, the Oklahoma City-based company had received a warning from the NYSE that the 30-day average closing price of its shares had fallen below the $1 per share requirement and it had six months to regain compliance.

During Hart Energy’s DUG Midcontinent conference and exhibition late last year, Chaparral Energy CFO Scott Pittman addressed the negative publicity that has caused the Stack Play to fall out of favor with a number of investors in recent years.

According to Pittman, some oil and gas operators in Oklahoma’s Stack-area were going too fast when parent/child issues weren’t understood, which left the play’s reputation in recovery for now.

“At some point, people will start to believe there are differentiating companies within the Stack,” Pittman told conference attendees on Nov. 20.


Scott Pittman, CFO of Chaparral Energy Inc.

Click here for Scott Pittman’s full presentation
at Hart Energy’s DUG Midcontinent Conference & Exhibition.


Chaparral also recently named Charles “Chuck” Duginski as president and CEO, succeeding K. Earl Reynolds who resigned “to pursue other interests,” according to a December press release.

Duginski joined Chaparral from Tapstone Energy LLC, where he most recently served as COO and senior vice president for the privately held independent also focused in Oklahoma. He has also previously worked at Echo Energy, Continental Resources Inc. and Chesapeake Energy Corp. as well as Mobil Oil and Exxon Mobil Corp., where he began his career.

In a statement on Jan. 13, Duginski said: “We are pleased to have regained full compliance with all NYSE listing requirements. We remain focused on adding value through operational excellence and maximizing returns from our drilling program.”

Chaparral’s common stock continues to trade without interruption on the NYSE, according to the company news release.