Anadarko shares fall 5.4 pct on well results

posted: 43 DAYS 5 HOURS AGO

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NEW YORK -Anadarko Petroleum Corp. shares fell Thursday on news of an unsuccessful well and as an analyst downgraded the oil exploration and production company.

Shares of the company fell $3.72, or 5.4 percent, to $65.61 in afternoon trading. Since early March, shares have more than doubled to close at $69.36 on Wednesday.

Anadarko said Thursday its South Grand Lahou exploration well, located offshore Cote d'Ivoire, did not encounter hydrocarbons. Separately, its Mahogany-4 well, located offshore Ghana, encountered more than 140 net feet of mostly oil pay, or the thickness of the rock that can deliver oil to the well, in high-quality, stacked reservoir sands.

JPMorgan analyst Joseph Allman downgraded the stock to "Neutral" from "Overweight," based on concerns that the stock will react negatively to the news of an unsuccessful well at South Grand Lahou. This, along with their commercially unsuccessful Venus well offshore Sierra Leone, is negative for the company, said Allman.

Also weighing on the stock, Allman added, "The stock appears overvalued relative to its peers, even after giving risked credit for its inventory of exploration projects."

Allman's price target for Anadarko is $63.

2009-10-15 15:51:40