Operational Inflection Point
Q: Are we at an operational inflection point?
A: Management believes they are at an operational inflection point, expressing confidence in improved capital efficiency and maintaining the 315 oil guide. They highlight increased productivity and expect "nice growth on the oil side" in the coming quarters, feeling good about keeping crude volumes where they're at. "

Delaware Basin Productivity
Q: What's driving the 10% productivity gains?
A: The gains are driven by a refocus on core areas in the Delaware Basin, particularly in New Mexico and Texas. Both high-grading of locations and completion optimizations contribute to a significant uptick in well performance. Management is confident in delivering the 10% well productivity gains in 2024. "

Capital Allocation Strategy
Q: Why favor buybacks over dividends now?
A: Management sees their shares as undervalued, considering them "very attractive" at current levels, and is biased towards share repurchases. They plan to deliver about 70% of free cash flow back to shareholders, leaning into buybacks in the near term, with the variable dividend falling out of that based on the 70% threshold. " "

M&A Strategy
Q: What's your current stance on M&A?
A: While they will continue to evaluate opportunities, management maintains a disciplined approach focusing on accretive deals with strong industrial logic. They like their current scale and resource depth across five basins but remain open to opportunistic additions, especially in oil-prone basins, balancing short-term accretion with long-term fit. " "

Capital Budget & Infrastructure
Q: What could affect your capital budget range?
A: Efficiency gains could pull more activity into the year, potentially increasing capital spending towards the high end of the $3.3–$3.6 billion range. Deflation opportunities may allow capital spending to trend towards the low end. They proactively address infrastructure needs to support future growth and maintain operational reliability. " " "

Oil Production Guidance
Q: Can you hit or exceed the 315 oil number?
A: Management is confident in delivering the 315,000 barrels per day oil guidance this year, citing improved well productivity and performance. They have overcome weather impacts and feel good about delivering the 2024 full-year numbers. "

Delaware Basin Growth
Q: Will Delaware Basin drive future growth?
A: The Delaware Basin is expected to play a key role, with management seeing it as a growth asset in equivalent production due to gas and NGL growth, even with flat oil production. They will continue allocating capital efficiently, balancing growth and returns, with the Delaware remaining a central focus. " "

Operational Efficiencies
Q: What's driving your operational efficiencies?
A: Improvements are due to the hard work and creativity of their operating team, focusing on core areas and maintaining efficiency gains. They continue to find ways to improve each quarter, winning on many fronts, and believe there's more improvement to come. "

Eagle Ford Outlook
Q: What's the focus in Eagle Ford development?
A: They are excited about the Eagle Ford, testing downspacing and refrac activity yielding "phenomenal results." Capital efficiency is improving, with capital spending reducing by about $75 million year-over-year while achieving single-digit production growth. The opportunity set continues to expand without any M&A dollars. " "

Carbon Capital Spending
Q: How does carbon spending generate returns?
A: Management is investing in retrofitting existing facilities to lower emissions and stay ahead of coming regulations. They consider this necessary to preserve their rights to provide energy and view it as part of their responsibility, acknowledging that this spending will continue to grow over the next few years. " "