Chord Energy Corporation announced the resignation of President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel Brown, effective October 19, 2026. Mr. Brown is resigning without severance benefits due to the termination being without "Good Reason" and stated that the departure was not the result of any disagreement with the company regarding operations or policies.
On the same effective date, the Board of Directors appointed Michael Lou as the new President and CEO. Mr. Lou, age 52, previously served as the company's Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy Officer, and Chief Commercial Officer. He also previously held the role of Executive Vice President and CFO from 2022 to 2024. Prior to his tenure at Chord, Mr. Lou served as CFO and Executive Vice President for Oasis Petroleum Inc. and held positions at Oasis Midstream Partners LP.
In conjunction with the filing, Chord provided preliminary operational and financial results for the three months ended September 30, 2026. The company reported that volumes exceeded the high-end of guidance across oil, natural gas, and NGLs, while capital expenditures were in line with guidance.
The company also disclosed shareholder returns for the third quarter, including $205 million in share repurchases at an average price of $135.74 per share. Additionally, $44.3 million in share repurchases were made in the first quarter of 2026 at an average price of $142.32 per share.
Chord announced the divestiture of non-operated Marcellus assets for a total gross consideration of $550 million, including a $55 million deposit paid during the third quarter. As of September 30, 2026, the company reported cash and cash equivalents of $804.7 million and total debt of $1,482.2 million.
The company noted that NYMEX WTI averaged $85.69 per barrel and NYMEX Henry Hub averaged $2.96 per million British thermal units during the quarter. However, the company recorded a loss on realized hedges of $48.7 million during the period.
