History
Bill Barrett Corporation merged with Fifth Creek in 2018 to become HighPoint Resources, then sold itself to Bonanza Creek in 2021 through a prepackaged Chapter 11, leaving shareholders about 1.6%.
2017-2018: The Fifth Creek merger
The record begins in December 2017, when a new holding company, Red Rider Holdco, filed to register shares for a merger of Bill Barrett Corporation (BBG) with Fifth Creek Energy Operating Company, backed by NGP Natural Resources XI. Each BBG share would convert into one Holdco share, and Fifth Creek's owner would receive 100,000,000 shares. A February 2018 amended filing put the expected ownership at about 52% for existing BBG holders and about 48% for Fifth Creek's sole member.
The merger closed on March 19, 2018, and the company, renamed HighPoint Resources, became parent of both businesses. BBG holders received 110,933,552 shares and Fifth Creek's owners received 100,000,000. Trading under the ticker HPR on the NYSE began March 20, 2018. HighPoint guaranteed BBG's bank credit agreement and its 7.0% notes due 2022 and 8.75% notes due 2025, and signed a Stockholders Agreement giving Fifth Creek's owner board designation rights while it held at least 10%.
The share counts in the feed fall sharply in 2017 and are not explained by the beats, so they are not relied on here. In September 2018 a subsidiary signed a new credit agreement with JPMorgan Chase as agent: a $1.5 billion maximum, a $500 million initial borrowing base, and maturity extended from April 2020 to September 2023.
2019-2020: Losses and shrinking credit
The record for 2019 is quiet until early 2020. In February 2020, HighPoint reported a 2019 net loss of $134.8 million ($0.64 per share). Production was 12.5 MMBoe (million barrels of oil equivalent), up 23%, and year-end proved reserves were 127.4 MMBoe, up 22%. It guided 2020 spending about 40% below 2019 with no increased debt. It also agreed with Fifth Creek's owner and NGP to cut the board from twelve to eight directors at the April 28, 2020 annual meeting.
In March 2020 the NYSE warned that the average share price over 30 trading days was below the $1.00 minimum, giving six months to regain compliance. The company proposed a reverse stock split, though the beats do not record the outcome.
Lenders then tightened. In May 2020 the borrowing base and commitment were cut from $500.0 million to $300.0 million, with a higher interest rate and a $50.0 million minimum availability requirement. In November a second amendment cut the commitment to $185.0 million and the borrowing base to $200.0 million, and removed the minimum availability requirement.
2020-2021: Sale to Bonanza Creek
On November 9, 2020, HighPoint agreed to be acquired by Bonanza Creek Energy. Its $625 million of 7.0% and 8.75% senior notes would be exchanged for Bonanza Creek shares plus up to $100 million of new notes. HighPoint shareholders would receive 0.114 Bonanza Creek share per share, about 1.6% of the combined company, against 68% for existing Bonanza Creek holders and 30.4% for participating noteholders. HighPoint paid a $6 million fee at signing. Holders of at least 46.5% of the equity, linked to Fifth Creek, signed a support agreement.
The deal needed at least 97.5% of the notes to tender; otherwise a prepackaged Chapter 11 (a bankruptcy plan agreed in advance) was the fallback. The registration statements were declared effective on February 9, 2021, and a shareholder meeting was set for March 12.
The out-of-court route was not completed. HighPoint and two subsidiaries filed for Chapter 11 in Delaware on March 14, 2021, which accelerated $140 million of credit facility borrowings, $350 million of 2022 notes and $275 million of 2025 notes, though enforcement was stayed. The court confirmed the plan on March 18.
The acquisition completed on April 1, 2021. Each HighPoint share became 0.11464 Bonanza Creek shares; existing holders received 490,221 shares in total, about 1.6%. Noteholders received 9,314,214 shares plus $100 million of new 7.5% notes due 2026, and the credit facility was paid off and terminated. All directors left, and Woodall, Crawford and Wonstolen were deemed to have resigned. HighPoint's shares were suspended from the NYSE on April 5, and its securities registration was terminated on April 19, 2021. As of April 1, 2021, HighPoint was a wholly owned subsidiary of Bonanza Creek with no debt facilities remaining.
Written from the 16 story beats below (2017 to 19 Apr 2021), which come from the company's own announcements and filings.