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Gulfport Energy NYSE: GPOR outlined plans to emphasize operating efficiency, inventory expansion, disciplined capital allocation and downstream market access as President and CEO Nick Dell’Osso led his first earnings call in the role following the company’s second-quarter 2026 results.

Dell’Osso said Gulfport enters the second half with accelerating production following its first-half capital program, including liquids volumes expected to be more than 50% higher than first-half 2026 levels. He said the company’s asset base, balance sheet, cost structure and exposure to areas of growing natural-gas demand provide a foundation for long-term shareholder value creation.

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“Delivering better and more consistent results for shareholders will be our number one priority,” Dell’Osso said.

Inventory Expansion and Capital Allocation Gulfport said it has expanded its drilling inventory through leasing, delineation work and development of its Ohio Marcellus opportunities. Dell’Osso pointed to the company’s success in a state land auction and its announced $140 million 2026 budget for discretionary land purchases as key parts of that effort.

According to Dell’Osso, the state-land auction and planned discretionary leasing are expected to increase Gulfport’s net Appalachia location count by about 20%. He said the company has roughly 15 years of drilling inventory and cited an Enverus analysis showing Gulfport has one of the stronger weighted-average inventory breakevens among gas-focused companies.

The CEO said the company will remain selective on acreage purchases, prioritizing value rather than pursuing scale for its own sake. In response to analyst questions, Dell’Osso said Gulfport has a clear view of the opportunities included in its $140 million leasing budget and expects much of the multiyear leasing effort to come to fruition during 2026.

He added that leasing activity should continue beyond this year but likely will not reach the same scale in 2027. That could free up cash flow for other priorities, including share repurchases and debt reduction.

“We will define the terms of competition around creating the highest financial returns and advancing our strategic goals,” Dell’Osso said, listing operational improvements, inventory depth, lower breakevens, market access, financial strength and shareholder returns among those goals.

Dell’Osso said the company intends to maintain a conservative mid-cycle leverage ratio and use hedges to protect capital committed to its drilling program. He said Gulfport will remain active in its share-repurchase program during the second half of 2026, although he did not provide quarterly repurchase guidance.

Focus on More Consistent Execution A central theme of Dell’Osso’s comments was improving the consistency of Gulfport’s drilling and completion operations. He said some individual wells have performed at a level comparable with the industry’s best execution, but the company sees room to improve planning, data quality and processes across its operations.

Dell’Osso said he would like Gulfport to eventually operate a more consistent capital program rather than one that is heavily weighted toward the front part of the year. He said a steadier operating cadence could help lower well costs and improve execution, though he cautioned that the company may not fully achieve that objective in 2027.

“Consistent, continuous operations will drive our ability to lower our well costs and execute better wells every time that we turn the drill bit,” Dell’Osso said.

Matthew Rucker, Gulfport’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, discussed recent progress in the Marcellus. The company drilled four wells with average lateral lengths of 16,000 feet during the first quarter and completed the pad during the second quarter. Rucker said the completion work maintained drilling momentum, with more than 20 hours of pumping per day and stage placement meeting expectations.

The wells were brought online near the end of the quarter and have completed flowback. Rucker said Gulfport initially choked the wells back during ramp-up and cleanup, but the pad has since been turned up to its full initial-production potential. He said gas and liquids rates have been better than anticipated and that the wells have remained relatively flat.

On costs, Rucker said drilling and completion costs on a per-foot basis were about 25% lower than those of shorter Marcellus laterals drilled last year. He said the results have helped establish a development approach for lateral length and spacing across the remaining acreage.

Natural-Gas Demand and Market Access Dell’Osso said Gulfport sees potential benefits from growing in-basin natural-gas demand, including demand associated with AI data centers. He said the company already sells significant gas volumes in the basin and benefits from relatively attractive gathering, processing and transportation costs, as well as flexibility around sales destinations.

While Dell’Osso said Gulfport may not be the first choice for the largest 15- to 20-year contracts pursued by larger companies, he said it is positioned to serve projects being developed near its operations. He said Gulfport aims to work with customers on delivery requirements and to ensure its gas can reach available markets.

The company recently released 60,000 per day of firm transportation capacity, or roughly 10% of its takeaway capacity, according to an analyst’s question. Dell’Osso and Executive Vice President and CFO Michael Hodges characterized the move as an active management decision rather than a signal of a broader shift in strategy. Hodges said the company could reach a strong sales point without that transportation and saw an economic uplift from releasing it.

SCOOP Strategy and Executive Transition On potential larger-scale acquisitions, Dell’Osso said Gulfport will evaluate opportunities only where assets can improve the company at an appropriate valuation. He said the company does not intend to pursue deals simply to become larger and will seek a strategic advantage before bidding on assets.

Dell’Osso also said Gulfport’s SCOOP position remains strategically interesting. While the asset has received limited investment in recent years, he said production has remained relatively steady and the Mid-Continent could eventually provide valuable access to growing Gulf Coast demand. He said the company needs to do additional work to determine the appropriate investment and operating strategy for the asset.

Dell’Osso closed the call by recognizing Hodges, who is leaving the company after choosing to spend more time with his family. Dell’Osso said Hodges leaves Gulfport in a position of financial strength and thanked him for his leadership during the transition.

About Gulfport Energy (NYSE:GPOR)Gulfport Energy Corporation is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The company focuses on the development of onshore natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and crude oil properties in the United States. Gulfport utilizes horizontal drilling and multi-stage hydraulic fracturing techniques to maximize production and enhance recovery from its resource plays.

The company's primary operations are concentrated in two major U.S. resource basins.

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OKLAHOMA CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Gulfport Energy Corporation (NYSE: GPOR) (“Gulfport” or the “Company”) today announced the successful acquisition of approximately 4,700 net undeveloped acres in the core of the Ohio Utica in Belmont County, Ohio, through the Ohio Oil and Gas Land Management Commission State Land Lease Sale for a total purchase price of approximately $83.0 million.

Key Highlights

Large, contiguous acquisition of approximately 4,700 net undeveloped acres secured in a highly competitive lease sale environment, adjacent to existing operations and recently acquired discretionary acreage High-quality core acreage position expected to drive development efficiency, unlock operational synergies and maximize utilization of existing infrastructure and midstream capacity Located in the highly productive, liquids-rich Utica wet gas window and represents a core, top-tier area of Gulfport’s acreage Adds approximately 16 net locations (normalized to 15,000’ laterals), with locations concentrated in the highest-return tier of our development opportunities Development expected to commence in 2027, with forecasted returns at the top end of our portfolio, highlighting the strong economic profile and immediate actionability of the acquired acreage Total purchase price of approximately $83.0 million equates to approximately $17,500 per net acre or $5.1 million per net location (normalized to 15,000’ laterals) Strong financial position supports the acquisition, funded through cash on hand and available capacity under Gulfport’s revolving credit facility Nick Dell’Osso, Gulfport’s President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “The Ohio state land lease acquisition represents a highly strategic bolt-on to our core Utica position, adding a large, contiguous block of acreage adjacent to our existing best-in-class Utica gas inventory, further underscoring the strategic nature of this investment. The position lies in the fairway of the highly productive, liquids-rich Utica wet gas window and offers the highest-return opportunities in our portfolio, extending our liquids runway while enhancing the depth and flexibility of our development program across commodity cycles.”

“As Gulfport has consistently demonstrated, we are focused on disciplined capital allocation and investing in opportunities that drive value creation. Our strong balance sheet enables us to execute this acquisition while maintaining financial strength and we are committed to continuing to build net asset value and delivering durable, long-term returns for our shareholders,” Dell’Osso concluded.

About Gulfport
Gulfport is an independent natural gas-weighted exploration and production company focused on the exploration, acquisition and production of natural gas, crude oil and NGL in the United States with primary focus in the Appalachia and Anadarko basins. Our principal properties are located in eastern Ohio targeting the Utica and Marcellus formations and in central Oklahoma targeting the SCOOP Woodford and SCOOP Springer formations.

Forward Looking Statements
This press release includes “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements are statements other than statements of historical fact. They include statements regarding Gulfport’s current expectations, management's outlook guidance or forecasts of future events, projected cash flow and liquidity, inflation, share repurchases and other return of capital plans, its ability to enhance cash flow and financial flexibility, future production and commodity mix, plans and objectives for future operations, the ability of our employees, portfolio strength and operational leadership to create long-term value and the assumptions on which such statements are based. Gulfport believes the expectations and forecasts reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, Gulfport can give no assurance they will prove to have been correct. They can be affected by inaccurate or changed assumptions or by known or unknown risks and uncertainties. Important risks, assumptions and other important factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements are described under "Risk Factors" in Item 1A of Gulfport’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 and any updates to those factors set forth in Gulfport's subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q or current reports on Form 8-K (available at https://www.gulfportenergy.com/investors/sec-filings). Gulfport undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to any forward-looking statements, to report events or to report the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Investors should note that Gulfport announces financial information in SEC filings, press releases and public conference calls. Gulfport may use the Investors section of its website (www.gulfportenergy.com) to communicate with investors. It is possible that the financial and other information posted there could be deemed to be material information. The information on Gulfport’s website is not part of this filing.

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