Oil and Gas Companies May Be Take Over Targets

Buying Smaller Firms May Help Build Reserves. Last Year Shell Spent $12.87/barrel to Explore Oil Fields and companies like Anadarko and Dana whose stock market value are currently worth $6.52/share and $7.82/share respectively. CEO of Talisman Energy, John Manzoni, says, " It may prove a better value to buy than to build over the course of the next 12 to 24 months."

PNC Capital Advisors says that other takeover targets include:

Apache (APA), Devon Energy (DVN), and EOG (EOG)

Five Large Oil Companies Had $75 Billion in Cash in September, which is enough to buy 7 of the 11 S&P 500 Oil and Gas Exploration and production index, which is down over 30% so far this year.

Credit Crunch and Lower Oil May Force Acquisitions as the ability to get cash is growing tough for independent explorers.

Analyst Richard Slape of Canaccord Adams says that when companies are in distress, "They can either sell the whole business or if there is a nice asset, sell that off."