Houston, May 15, 2026, 17:03 CDT
- Devon Energy (DVN) ended Friday’s session up 4.76% at $49.49, close to its 52-week high. Shares climbed following another move higher in crude prices.
- Brent crude finished the day at $109.26 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate closed at $105.42 as concerns over the Strait of Hormuz continued.
- Devon wrapped up its Coterra merger and signed off on an $8 billion buyback plan just days ago.
Devon Energy shares jumped Friday. Oil prices moved higher, and investors took another look at the bigger shale company after its Coterra Energy deal. The integration is just a week old, but the market is already watching for cash returns.
Devon Energy shares finished at $49.49, climbing $2.25, or 4.76%. About 16.5 million shares changed hands. The stock is still under the 52-week high of $52.71, according to the company’s investor page.
Timing is key. Devon isn’t just moving on the numbers from its Delaware Basin drilling or other U.S. shale plays anymore. Investors are now looking at whether the company’s bigger asset base, larger share buyback, and higher crude prices will show up as free cash flow—cash left over after capital spending.
Oil prices pushed higher, sending Brent crude up 3.35% to $109.26 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate adding 4.2% to $105.42. Reuters said traders stayed alert to supply risks after more reports of ship attacks and seizures near the Strait of Hormuz, a route for about a fifth of global oil and LNG flows.
Prediction markets aren’t betting on a speedy recovery. Polymarket put the odds of Strait of Hormuz traffic returning to normal by the end of May at just 6%. Over at Kalshi, contracts showed a 37% chance for normal traffic before Aug. 1, 48% before Sept. 1, and 60% before Oct. 1.
Devon was not the only stock up. Occidental Petroleum jumped 4.89%. Shares of EOG Resources were up 3.14%. Diamondback Energy also gained, adding 1.65%. Devon’s climb matched the move in other oil-focused U.S. exploration and production stocks.
Devon wrapped up its all-stock merger with Coterra on May 7. The merged company kept the Devon name and DVN ticker, shifted its headquarters to Houston but still has a sizeable base in Oklahoma City. Former Devon shareholders hold roughly 54% of shares after the deal, with former Coterra holders owning about 46%.
Chief Executive Clay Gaspar called the deal a “defining moment” and said Devon is aiming for $1 billion a year in pre-tax synergies by the end of 2027. That includes cost cuts or earnings gains from putting the two companies together. Devon Energy Investors
The board gave the go-ahead for an $8 billion share buyback and set a fixed quarterly dividend at 32 cents per share. Gaspar said Devon is aiming to be “active and opportunistic” with the buyback, but the company noted that actual timing and the amount repurchased would hinge on things like market conditions, commodity prices, cash flow and how much debt they still want to pay down. Devon Energy Investors
Kimmeridge is also weighing in. Reuters reported Kimmeridge owns about 1.4% of Devon and has called for asset sales, tighter capital allocation, and tweaks to executive pay after the merger. “Scale alone does not create value, but discipline and execution do,” Managing Partner Mark Viviano wrote in an open letter quoted by Reuters. Reuters
Devon is getting a boost from a pickup in industry dealmaking. U.S. upstream oil and gas M&A reached $38 billion in the first quarter, the highest level in two years, according to Enverus. The Devon-Coterra deal was the biggest, taking the largest slice of that total. “The case for ‘higher-for-longer oil prices’ is strengthening and could lead to more consolidation,” said Andrew Dittmar, principal analyst at Enverus Intelligence Research. Reuters
But the trade isn’t simple. Devon missed first-quarter profit forecasts earlier this month as weak U.S. natural gas prices weighed. Reuters said Waha Hub gas prices in the Permian were negative for a record 61 days, with pipeline limits keeping supply trapped. If gas stays soft, oil loses its war premium, or merger savings lag, Friday’s rally may just be relief and not a reset.
Devon’s next formal update is set for mid-June, when it says it will share new financial and operating guidance for the merged company, starting from May 7. For now, the market is working off the broad strokes: more oil, a larger Devon, and management facing pressure to show the buyback matches up with cash flow.
