Topic: Growth Stocks

CIMAREX ENERGY $43.10 (New York symbol XEC

CIMAREX ENERGY $43.10 (New York symbol XEC; SI Rating: Extra Risk) (303-295-3995; www.cimarex.com; Shares outstanding: 83.4 million; Market cap: $3.6 billion) is an oil and gas explorer and producer that mainly operates in the U.S. Natural gas makes up 70% of its production.

Cimarex has properties in western Oklahoma; Kansas; the upper Gulf Coast regions of Texas and southern Louisiana; the Permian Basin area of western Texas; and the Gulf of Mexico.

In the three months ended June 30, 2009, the company produced an average of 453.9 million cubic feet of natural gas per day. That’s down 7% from a year earlier. Cimarex slowed drilling and production to await higher gas prices.

Cash flow per share fell 65.0%, to $1.87 from $5.34, on lower gas and oil prices. The company’s shares trade at just 5.4 times its forecast 2009 cash flow. Cimarex’s $706.7-million long-term debt is a manageable 21.4% of its market cap.

The company will spend over $500 million on exploration and development this year. It balances its drilling between its lower-risk mid-continent and Permian Basin properties and its higher-risk Gulf Coast and Gulf of Mexico projects. In the latest quarter, Cimarex drilled 24 wells and had a 96% success rate.

Cimarex is a buy for aggressive investors.

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