Recently, the top leaders of two smaller energy explorers bought a lot of stock.
Shares of HighPeak Energy HPK 3.92%, which is based in Fort Worth, have been moving in a range so far in 2024. The stock has gone up 2.4% so far this year, while the Invesco S&P SmallCap Energy PSCE 2.25% exchange-traded fund has gone down 6%. The price of Epsilon EPSN -0.53% Energy of Houston shares has gone up by 10%.
The S&P SmallCap 600 Capped Energy index is what the Invesco ETF is based on. It does not hold shares of either company, though. These two businesses are pretty much at the “small” end of the scale. The market value of HighPeak is just under $2 billion. On the other hand, Epsilon’s market value of only $121 million makes its CEO Jason Stabell one of the contacts in its news reports.
There were 100,000 shares bought by HighPeak Chairman and CEO Jack Hightower on September 20 for $1.6 million, which is about $15.54 per share. Another document that Hightower sent to the SEC says that he bought the shares through a personal account that now has five million shares. He has another 81 million shares that are owned by limited partnerships and limited liability companies. The latest election statement from HighPeak says that he owns more than 70% of the company, making him its biggest shareholder.
HighPeak didn’t answer when asked to make Hightower available for comment.
The other times Hightower bought HighPeak stock on the open market in 2024 were from August 27 to September 3, when he paid $2.9 million for 186,392 shares, which is about $15.46 per share.
CEO of Epsilon Stabell bought 74,000 shares on September 18 for $373,700, which is about $5.05 each. He got the shares through a limited liability company that now has 470,339 shares. In his own account, Stabell also has 103,508 shares.
As of April 11, Stabell has a 2% stake in Epsilon, making him the company’s biggest individual backer.
In an email to Barron’s, Stabell said, “I am excited about the company we are building and will always strive to be an owner, along with our investors, not an employee.” We have a strong balance sheet, a steady dividend, and a wider range of oil and natural gas production, along with fee-based midstream earnings. This makes us stand out in the small-cap space. Because of this, I’ve bought the stock every month for the past two years.
He has, in fact. On August 16, he paid $48,250 for 9,139 shares, which is an average price of $5.28.
Inside Scoop is a regular column in Barron’s that talks about stock deals made by “insiders” like business executives and board members, as well as big shareholders, politicians, and other well-known people. Because they are insiders, these investors have to tell the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory groups about any stock deals they make.
