EQT Reports Second Quarter 2015 Earnings

PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--EQT Corporation (NYSE: EQT) today announced second quarter 2015 net income attributable to EQT of $5.5 million, or $0.04 per diluted share (EPS), compared to second quarter 2014 earnings of $110.9 million, or $0.73 EPS. Adjusted net income for the quarter was $1.1 million, or $0.01 adjusted EPS, compared to adjusted EPS of $0.61 in the second quarter of 2014. Adjusted operating cash flow attributable to EQT was $80.7 million in the second quarter 2015; $202.3 million lower than the same period last year. The non-GAAP financial measures are detailed and reconciled in the Non-GAAP Disclosures section of this news release.

Highlights:

• Production sales volume was 34% higher
• Midstream gathering revenue was 35% higher
• Midstream transmission revenue was 19% higher
• Realized natural gas price was 40% lower
• Successful IPO of EQT GP Holdings, LP
• Cash balance of $2 billion (excluding EQM)
• A $1.5 billion undrawn, unsecured revolver

RESULTS BY BUSINESS

EQT Production

EQT Production achieved sales volume of 147.1 Bcfe in the second quarter 2015, 33.5% higher than the second quarter 2014; however, the increase in revenue from the higher volume was more than offset by a 53% lower average realized sales price compared to the same quarter last year, at $1.41 per Mcfe for the quarter. Adjusted net operating revenue for the quarter (a non-GAAP financial measure) was $206.8 million, which was $123.8 million lower. Operating loss for the second quarter was $66.9 million, including noncash losses on hedges of $25.9 million, compared to operating income of $144.7 million last year, including noncash losses on hedges of $9.5 million.

EQT Production’s operating expenses for the quarter were $310.5 million, which was $50.7 million higher than the same period last year and consistent with the significant growth in sales volume. Depreciation, depletion, and amortization (DD&A) was $37.1 million higher. Transportation and processing expenses were $11.2 million higher; exploration expense was $4.0 million higher; and lease operating expense (LOE), excluding production taxes, was $2.8 million higher. However, production taxes were $3.2 million lower resulting from a lower average unhedged price; while selling, general and administrative (SG&A) was $1.2 million lower.

The Company drilled (spud) 48 gross wells during the second quarter 2015, which included 38 Marcellus wells, with an average length-of-pay of 4,865 feet; and 10 Upper Devonian wells, with an average length-of-pay of 5,510 feet.

Guidance

The Company increased its 2015 guidance for production sales volume to 595 – 605 Bcfe, including liquids volume of 9,000 – 10,000 MBBls. Third quarter volume is estimated at 150 – 155 Bcfe, with liquids of 2,300 – 2,400 MBBls. The Company also expects the average differential to the NYMEX price forecast of negative $0.35 – negative $0.45 per Mcf for 2015; with an average differential to the NYMEX price of negative $0.85 – negative $0.95 per Mcf for the third quarter of 2015.

EQT Midstream

EQT Midstream’s second quarter 2015 operating income was $108.2 million, 22% higher than the second quarter of 2014. Net operating revenue was $189.4 million, 24% higher than the same period last year. Net gathering revenue was 35% higher at $122.9 million, resulting from a 35% increase in gathered volume. Net transmission revenue increased by 19% to $61.1 million, due to an increase in firm transmission contracted capacity added in the fourth quarter of 2014. Operating expenses for the quarter were $81.2 million, which was $10.6 million higher than the same period last year. Per unit gathering and compression expense decreased by 19% as volume continued to grow faster than expenses.

Guidance

The Company is projecting 2015 midstream earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) between $555 and $575 million.

Realized Price

In the second quarter, the Company’s average realized price was $2.36 per Mcfe, 40% lower than the $3.93 per Mcfe realized in the second quarter 2014 – with $1.41 per Mcfe allocated to EQT Production and $0.95 per Mcfe allocated to EQT Midstream.

OTHER BUSINESS

EQT Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE: EQM) / EQT GP Holdings, LP (NYSE: EQGP)

On May 15, 2015, EQT GP Holdings, LP (EQGP), an EQT Corporation company, completed its initial public offering of 26,450,000 common units at $27.00 per unit. EQT Corporation holds a 90.1% limited partner interest and a non-economic general partner interest in EQGP.

EQGP owns a 30.2% limited partner interest and 2% general partner interest, including 100% of the incentive distribution rights, in EQT Midstream Partners, LP (EQM), a growth-oriented limited partnership formed by EQT to own, operate, acquire and develop midstream assets in the Appalachian Basin.

For the second quarter of 2015, EQT recorded $58.2 million of earnings, or $0.38 per diluted share, attributable to noncontrolling interests in EQGP and EQM.

On July 21, 2015, EQM announced a cash distribution to its unitholders of $0.64 per unit, for the second quarter of 2015. EQGP also announced its initial cash distribution to its unitholders of $0.04739 per unit for the second quarter of 2015. The initial distribution is prorated for the 47 days from the close of its initial public offering to the end of the quarter, and corresponds to a quarterly distribution of $0.09175 per unit.

The results for EQM and EQGP were released today and are available at www.eqtmidstreampartners.com.

Hedging

During the quarter, the Company added to its hedge position. The Company's total natural gas production hedge position through 2017 is:

Operating Income

The Company reports operating income by segment in this news release. Interest, income taxes and unallocated expense are controlled on a consolidated, corporate-wide basis and are not allocated to the segments.

The following table reconciles operating (loss) income by segment, as reported in this news release, to the consolidated operating income reported in the Company’s financial statements:

Unallocated expense is primarily due to certain incentive compensation and administrative costs that are not allocated to the operating segments.

Marcellus Horizontal Well Status (cumulative since inception)

*Includes planned stages for spud wells that have not yet been hydraulically fractured.

NON-GAAP DISCLOSURES

Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Earnings per Diluted Share

Adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per diluted share are non-GAAP supplemental financial measures that are presented because they are important measures used by management to evaluate period-to-period comparisons of earnings trends. Adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per diluted share should not be considered as alternatives to net income or earnings per diluted share presented in accordance with GAAP.

The table below reconciles adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per diluted share with net income and earnings per diluted share, as derived from the statements of consolidated income to be included in EQT’s report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2015.

Operating Cash Flow and Adjusted Operating Cash Flow Attributable to EQT

Operating cash flow and adjusted operating cash flow attributable to EQT are non-GAAP supplemental financial measures that are presented as indicators of an oil and gas exploration and production company’s ability to internally fund exploration and development activities and to service or incur additional debt. EQT includes this information because management believes that changes in operating assets and liabilities relate to the timing of cash receipts and disbursements, and therefore, may not relate to the period in which the operating activities occurred. Adjusted operating cash flow attributable to EQT excludes the noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA (a non-GAAP supplemental financial measure reconciled below). Management believes that removing the impact on operating cash flows of the public unitholders of EQGP and EQM that is otherwise required to be consolidated in EQT’s results provides useful information to an EQT investor. Operating cash flow and adjusted operating cash flow attributable to EQT should not be considered as alternatives to net cash provided by operating activities presented in accordance with GAAP. The table below reconciles operating cash flow and adjusted operating cash flow attributable to EQT with net cash provided by operating activities, as derived from the statements of consolidated cash flows to be included in EQT’s report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2015.

EQT Production Adjusted Net Operating Revenues

The operational information in the EQT Corporation Price Reconciliation table below presents an average realized price ($/Mcfe) to EQT Production and EQT Corporation, which is based on EQT Production’s adjusted net operating revenues, a non-GAAP supplemental financial measure. EQT Production adjusted net operating revenues is presented because it is an important measure used by the Company’s management to evaluate period-to-period comparisons of earnings and cash flow trends. EQT Production adjusted net operating revenues should not be considered as an alternative to EQT Corporation operating revenues, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, to be included in EQT’s report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2015. The tables below reconcile EQT Production adjusted net operating revenues, a non-GAAP supplemental financial measure, to EQT Corporation operating revenues.

The Company reports gain (loss) for hedging ineffectiveness and gain (loss) on derivatives not designated as hedges within total operating revenues.

Third-party costs incurred to gather, process and transport gas produced by EQT Production to market sales points are recorded as a portion of transportation and processing costs in the Company’s Statements of Consolidated Income, to be included in EQT’s report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2015. Some transportation costs incurred by the Company are marketed for resale and are not incurred to transport gas produced by EQT Production. These transportation costs are reflected as a deduction from total operating revenues.

Adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA and Noncontrolling Interest Portion of Adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA

As used in this news release, adjusted EQT Midstream Partners (EQM) EBITDA means EQM’s net income plus EQM’s interest expense, depreciation and amortization expense, income tax expense (if applicable), and non-cash long-term compensation expense less EQM’s equity income, other income, capital lease payments, and adjusted EBITDA attributable to the Jupiter Gathering System (Jupiter) and NWV Gathering prior to acquisition. As used in this news release, noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA means the portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA attributable to the noncontrolling interest unit holders of EQM and EQT GP Holdings, LP (EQGP). Adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA and noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA are non-GAAP supplemental financial measures that management and external users of the Company's consolidated financial statements, such as industry analysts, investors, lenders and rating agencies, use to assess the effects of the noncontrolling interests in relation to:

• the Company's operating performance as compared to other companies in its industry;
• the ability of the Company's assets to generate sufficient cash flow to make distributions to its investors;
• the Company's ability to incur and service debt and fund capital expenditures; and
• the viability of acquisitions and other capital expenditure projects and the returns on investment of various investment opportunities.

The Company believes that adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA and noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA provide useful information to investors in assessing the Company's financial condition and results of operations. Adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA and noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA should not be considered as alternatives to EQM’s net income, operating income, or any other measure of financial performance or liquidity presented in accordance with GAAP. Adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA and noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA have important limitations as analytical tools because they exclude some, but not all, items that affect EQM's net income. Additionally, because adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA and noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA may be defined differently by other companies in the Company's or EQM's industries, the definition of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA and noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies, thereby diminishing their utility. The table below reconciles adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA and noncontrolling interest portion of adjusted EQT Midstream Partners EBITDA to EQM’s net income, as derived from the statements of consolidated operations to be included in EQM’s report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2015.

Q2 2015 Webcast Information

The Company's conference call with securities analysts begins at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time today and will be broadcast live via the Company's web site at http://www.eqt.com, and on the investor information page of the Company’s web site at http://ir.eqt.com, with a replay available for seven days following the call.

EQT Midstream Partners, LP and EQT GP Holdings, LP, for which EQT Corporation is the parent company, will also host a joint earnings teleconference with security analysts today, beginning at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time. The call will be broadcast live via http://www.eqtmidstreampartners.com, with a replay available for seven days following the call.

EQT Management speaks to investors from time-to-time and the analyst presentation for these discussions, which is updated periodically, is available via the Company’s investor relations website at http://ir.eqt.com.

About EQT Corporation:

EQT Corporation is an integrated energy company with emphasis on Appalachian area natural gas production, gathering, and transmission. With more than 125 years of experience, EQT continues to be a leader in the use of advanced horizontal drilling technology – designed to minimize the potential impact of drilling-related activities and reduce the overall environmental footprint. Through safe and responsible operations, the Company is committed to meeting the country’s growing demand for clean-burning energy, while continuing to provide a rewarding workplace and enrich the communities where its employees live and work. EQT also owns a 90% limited partner interest in EQT GP Holdings, LP. EQT GP Holdings, LP owns a 30% limited partner interest and 2% general partner interest, including 100% of the incentive distribution rights, in EQT Midstream Partners, LP.

Visit EQT Corporation at www.EQT.com.

Cautionary Statements

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) permits oil and gas companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only proved, probable and possible reserves that a company anticipates as of a given date to be economically and legally producible and deliverable by application of development projects to known accumulations. We use certain terms, such as “EUR” (estimated ultimate recovery) and “3P” (proved, probable and possible), that the SEC’s guidelines prohibit us from including in filings with the SEC. These measures are by their nature more speculative than estimates of reserves prepared in accordance with SEC definitions and guidelines and accordingly are less certain.

Total sales volume per day (or daily production) is an operational estimate of the daily production or sales volume on a typical day (excluding curtailments).

EBITDA is defined as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization and is not a financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP. EBITDA is a non-GAAP supplemental financial measure that the Company’s management and external users of the Company’s financial statements, such as industry analysts, investors, lenders and rating agencies, may use to assess: (i) the Company’s performance versus prior periods; (ii) the Company’s operating performance as compared to other companies in its industry; (iii) the ability of the Company’s assets to generate sufficient cash flow to make distributions to its investors; (iv) the Company’s ability to incur and service debt and fund capital expenditures; and (v) the viability of acquisitions and other capital expenditure projects and the returns on investment of various investment opportunities.

The Company is unable to provide a reconciliation of projected EBITDA to projected operating income, the most comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP, due to the unknown effect, timing and potential significance of certain income statement items.

Similarly, the Company is unable to provide a reconciliation of its projected operating cash flow to projected net cash provided by operating activities, the most comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP, because of uncertainties associated with projecting future net income and changes in assets and liabilities.

Disclosures in this news release contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Statements that do not relate strictly to historical or current facts are forward-looking. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, forward-looking statements contained in this news release specifically include the expectations of plans, strategies, objectives and growth and anticipated financial and operational performance of the Company and its subsidiaries, including guidance regarding the Company’s strategy to develop its Marcellus and other reserves; drilling plans and programs (including the number, type, feet of pay and location of wells to be drilled); projected natural gas prices, basis, recoveries and average differential; total resource potential, reserves, EUR, expected decline curve and reserve replacement ratio; projected production sales volume and growth rates (including liquids sales volume and growth rates); projected finding and development costs, operating costs, unit costs, well costs and midstream revenue deductions; projected gathering and transmission volume and growth rates; projected firm pipeline capacity and sales; the Company’s access to, and timing of, capacity on pipelines; infrastructure programs (including the timing, cost and capacity of the transmission and gathering expansion projects); the timing, cost, capacity and expected interconnects with facilities and pipelines of the Ohio Valley Connector and Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) projects; the ultimate terms, partners and structure of the MVP joint venture; technology (including drilling and completion techniques); projected EQT Midstream and EQT Midstream Partners, LP (EQM) EBITDA; monetization transactions, including asset sales (dropdowns) to EQM and other asset sales, joint ventures or other transactions involving the Company’s assets; the Company’s use of proceeds from the initial public offering of EQGP common units; the projected cash flows resulting from the Company’s limited partner interests in EQGP; internal rate of return (IRR) and returns per well; projected capital expenditures; the amount and timing of any repurchases under the Company’s share repurchase authorization; liquidity and financing requirements, including funding sources and availability; projected operating revenues, cash flows and cash-on-hand; hedging strategy; the effects of government regulation and litigation; the dividend and distribution amounts and rates; and tax position. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from projected results. Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. The Company has based these forward-looking statements on current expectations and assumptions about future events. While the Company considers these expectations and assumptions to be reasonable, they are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, regulatory and other risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and beyond the Company’s control. The risks and uncertainties that may affect the operations, performance and results of the Company’s business and forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those set forth under Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” of the Company’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, as updated by any subsequent Form 10-Qs.

Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which such statement is made and the Company does not intend to correct or update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Information in this news release regarding EQGP and its subsidiaries, including EQM, is derived from publicly available information published by the partnerships.