one MEEN Ag said:
There's pretty ironclad management requirements per profit producing worker. Every x employees needs another HR rep, team lead, project manager, field manager, etc. So there isn't many workforce synergies, especially for teams that have survived shale downturns, to go after. Headcount has been cut to the bone the past decade.
I would guess the total headcount reduction would be on the order of 5-10% of the acquired company and even then expect half of those roles to be added back in 24 months later.
The real gains is just land, but even then, you can't buy a company and then turn their wells off. Companies do just the opposite to pay for the acquisition. If two companies with 10 years of inventory merge, you still only have 10 years of inventory at the now 2x sized company.
I agree. You'll lose some execs, middle managers, and 5%-20% of the doers as they merge teams. Whether they are let go or leave to avoid the circus of a merger. Not to mention retention bonus costs to try and avoid that.
This is what they pitched;
Financial Benefits1)Annual synergies of $550 million representing over $3.0 billion in NPV10 over the next decade2)Capital and operating cost synergies: approximately $325 million3)Capital allocation and land synergies: approximately $150 million4)Financial and corporate cost synergies: approximately $75 million5)Substantial near and long-term financial accretion with ~10% free cash flow per share accretion expected in 2025
#1,2, and 4 which make up the bulk, I just don't see happening. At least not anywhere close to the numbers unless they were beyond conservative.
My limited experience of one merger of peers is corporate costs (#4) actually increase after merging systems, hiring / firing, layoffs, retention bonus, golden parachutes, for execs that close the deal or aren't retained after closing, etc.