Chesapeake (NYSE:CHK) (+112%; +4.0%), one of the largest U.S. producers of natural gas, oil, and natural gas liquids, was the top contributor to performance during the quarter. Early in the year we swapped our equity position for near-term bonds and preferred stocks which offered equity-like returns and a shorter horizon for value recognition. As management delivered good results, the bonds approached par. Consequently, we sold all of the remaining bonds over the last three months. On the final day of the quarter, we exchanged all of our preferreds into equity at a price well below our appraisal. In the quarter, both operating expenses and capital expenditures continued to improve, additional debt was retired below face value, and management reduced distribution costs through restructuring agreements with Williams and selling the Barnett assets. The company is pursuing more cost improvements and increased its asset sale target for the year to $2 billion after surpassing the original $1 billion goal. Asset sales plus proceeds from the recent upsized term loan and convertible debt offering, which raised more capital at better terms than expected, should cover the company’s obligations for at least three years. We remain confident that CEO Doug Lawler and Chesapeake’s board will continue to successfully navigate the company through this lower-for-longer commodity price environment.
Southeastern Asset Management's Longleaf Partners third quarter 2016 commentary.
