Antero Resources Prices Upsized IPO Above Expected Range, Said To Raise $1.6 Bln

(RTTNews) - Independent oil and natural gas company Antero Resources Corp. (AR) on Wednesday priced its initial public offering of 35.73 million shares of common stock at $44.00 per share, above its expected range. The offering is said to have raised proceeds about $1.57 billion. The company's stock is expected to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday under the ticker symbol "AR."

The Denver, Colorado-based, controlled by private equity firm Warburg Pincus LLC, had earlier revealed in an amended Form S-1 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on September 30 that it will sell 30.0 million shares of common stock at an estimated price range between $38.0 and $42.0.

The selling stockholders have also granted the underwriters an option for 30 days to purchase an additional 3.41 million shares of common stock at the initial offering price to cover over-allotments. Further, a 30-day option is granted to the underwriters to buy an additional 1.95 million shares to cover over-allotments if the underwriters sell more than 39.13 million shares. The offering is expected to close on October 16, subject to customary closing conditions. Antero Resources publicly filed an initial registration statement on Form S-1 with the SEC for a $1.0 billion IPO on June 13, 2013.

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of about $1.5 billion to repay outstanding borrowings under its credit facility and the balance to fund a portion of its drilling and development program. The company's 2013 capital budget is $1.95 billion, including $1.20 billion for drilling and completion.

Barclays, Citigroup, J.P. Morgan, Credit Suisse, Jefferies and Wells Fargo Securities are acting as book running managers of the offering.

Antero Resources was founded in 2002 by Chairman and CEO Paul Rady, as well as President and CFO Glen Warren. Private equity firms Warburg Pincus, Yorktown Energy Partners and Lehman Brothers Merchant Banking Group initially invested in Antero in 2003. The consortium led a $1 billion equity investment in the company in 2007.

Antero Resources is engaged in the exploitation, development and acquisition of natural gas, NGLs and oil properties located in the Appalachian Basin in West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Apart from Warburg Pincus, the company is currently partly owned by Yorktown Partners LLC and Trilantic Capital Partners.

The company currently holds about 317,000 net acres in the southwestern core of the Marcellus Shale and about 94,000 net acres in the core of the Utica Shale.

As of December 31, 2012, the company's estimated aggregate proved, probable and possible reserves were 26.1 trillion cubic feet equivalent or Tcfe. The company's 4.9 Tcfe of proved reserves were 21 percent proved developed and 75 percent natural gas.