This item is part of Stockwatch's value added news feed and is only available to Stockwatch subscribers.

Here is a sample of this item:

by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery lost two cents to $100.35 on the New York Merc, while Brent for March lost six cents to $108.73 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $23.90 to WTI ($76.45), down from a discount of $22.30. Natural gas for March added 40.1 cents to $5.22. The TSX energy index added 1.92 points to close at 277.39.

Birchcliff Energy Ltd. (BIR) added 89 cents to $9.36, its highest level since March, 2012, on 2.8 million shares. It earned 25 cents a share in the fourth quarter, exceeding analysts' predictions of seven cents a share. Production was up and operating costs were down. Both of these were largely thanks to Birchcliff's assets in its core Pouce Coupe area, where it drills Montney and Doig wells. It owns most of its infrastructure, so drilling wells and processing the gas can be done quickly and at low cost. The company is also receiving higher-than-usual prices for its gas because it did not hedge any production this winter. It sells its gas almost exclusively on the spot market, so it has been benefiting from recent price spikes. Birchcliff expects its cash flow to remain strong enough to justify its debt, which is higher than most of its peers at $454-million, including a working capital deficiency of $60-million. It is not worried. Its bank lines will likely go up after the review this May, because of the year-end reserve increase. On top of that, the company has six million warrants that expire in August and are currently in the money at $8.30, so that could lead to a nearly $50-million shot of cash later this year.

The remainder is available to Stockwatch subscribers.
Sign-up for a FREE 30-day Stockwatch subscription and SEE NO ADS