The third quarter net income of $328 million for Ascent Resources prompted its president Jeff Fisher to call it an “exceptional quarter of operational and financial results.”
Ascent released its third quarter earnings report this week showing adjusted net income of $206million, adjusted EBITDAX of $443 million. Cash flows from operations totaled $479 million while adjusted free cash flow was $222 million.
“This outstanding execution was the result of our efforts to reduce operating costs, improve efficiencies and capture higher margins through increased scale. As we enter the fourth quarter, we are poised to capitalize on this momentum and finish the year strong, with a clear path to generating record Adjusted Free Cash Flow in 2025,” continued Fisher in commenting about the financial results.
He predicted Ascent Resources will benefit from a structurally tighter natural gas market while the company’s approach to risk “insulates us from short-term volatility.” Fisher thinks the company is well positioned to deliver lasting and long-term value to its stakeholders.
Ascent’s net production, mostly from the Utica and Marcellus shale plays of Ohio, totaled 2,247 mmcfe a day and 15% was liquids production.
Third Quarter 2025 Production and Financial Results
Third quarter 2025 net production averaged 2,247 mmcfe per day, consisting of 1,900 mmcf per day of natural gas, 16,130 bbls per day of oil and 41,652 bbls per day of natural gas liquids (“NGL”), putting liquids at 15% of the overall production mix for the quarter.
The third quarter 2025 realized price, including the impact of settled commodity derivatives, was $3.77 per mcfe. Excluding the impact of settled commodity derivatives, the realized price was $3.13 per mcfe in the third quarter of 2025.
For the third quarter of 2025, Ascent reported Net Income of $328 million, Adjusted Net Income of $206 million, Adjusted EBITDAX of $443 million, along with Cash Flows from Operations of $479 million and Adjusted Free Cash Flow of $222 million. Ascent incurred $182 million of total capital expenditures in the third quarter of 2025 consisting of $147 million of D&C costs, $29 million of land and leasehold costs, and $6 million of capitalized interest.
Year-to-Date 2025 Production and Financial Results
Net production for the nine months ended September 30, 2025 averaged 2,095 mmcfe per day, consisting of 1,773 mmcf per day of natural gas, 14,337 bbls per day of oil and 39,282 bbls per day of NGL.
The realized price, including the impact of settled commodity derivatives, was $3.93 per mcfe for the nine months ended September 30, 2025. Excluding the impact of settled commodity derivatives, price realizations were $3.55 per mcfe for the year-to-date period.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2025, Ascent reported Net Income of $432 million, Adjusted Net Income of $602 million and Adjusted EBITDAX of $1.3 billion, along with Cash Flow from Operations of $1.2 billion and Adjusted Free Cash Flow of $511 million. Ascent incurred a total of $647 million of capital expenditures during the nine months ended September 30, 2025 consisting of $548 million of D&C costs, $79 million of land and leasehold costs, and $21 million of capitalized interest.
Balance Sheet and Liquidity
As of September 30, 2025, Ascent had total debt of approximately $2.2 billion, with $400 million of borrowings and $83 million of letters of credit issued under the credit facility. Liquidity as of September 30, 2025 was in excess of $1.5 billion, comprised of approximately $1.5 billion of available borrowing capacity under the credit facility and $5 million of cash on hand. The Company’s leverage ratio at the end of the quarter was 1.32x based on a LTM Adjusted EBITDAX basis.
In mid-October, Ascent issued $101 million of its existing 5.875% senior unsecured notes due 2029 in an add-on offering, increasing the aggregate principal amount outstanding to $500 million. Proceeds from the offering were used to repay borrowings under its revolving credit facility. This transaction reaffirms the Company’s commitment to risk management and reduces its cost of capital.
Operational Update
During the third quarter of 2025, the Company spud 12 operated wells, hydraulically fractured 10 wells, and turned-in-line 18 wells with an average lateral length of 16,376 feet. As of September 30, 2025, Ascent had 972 gross operated producing Utica wells.
Hedging Update
Ascent has significant hedges in place to reduce exposure to the volatility in commodity prices, as well as to protect its expected operating cash flow. The following table summarizes the Company’s natural gas and crude oil hedge position and average downside and upside prices as of September 30, 2025