SandRidge Energy Cuts 80 Jobs In Oklahoma, Follows Strategy

SandRidge Energy, Inc. (NYSE:SD) has recently laid off 80 employees from Oklahoma City, OK office, which is around 30% of its workforce there. Following the job cut, the battery of staff in the office reduced to 189 from 269.

The retrenchment move is in line with SandRidge's strategy to make the company more efficient and reduce costs in order to reap higher investment returns. In the 2018 guidance, the company announced its intention to lower general and administrative expenses in the range of $36-$39 million per annum.

More news of lay-offs and cost-cutting initiatives are expected to come throughout the year. Notably, the company's general and administrative cost per barrel in the fourth quarter of 2017 was $4.77, much higher than the year-ago period's $2.27.

During the end of 2017, activist investor Carl C. Icahn and others successfully stopped a $746-million acquisition of the Colorado-based Bonanza Creek Energy, Inc. (NYSE:BCEI) by SandRidge and questioned the then CEO James Bennett's actions. We note that at the beginning of this February, the company revised its leadership following Bennett's departure. At present, Bill Griffin is serving as the interim president and CEO of SandRidge.

Restructuring and cost-cutting through job-cuts in Oklahoma are not new as last month, Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) let go around 330 workers.

About SandRidge

SandRidge is engaged in development and production of oil and gas. The company mainly focuses on promoting high-return, growth-oriented projects in the U.S. Mid-Continent and Niobrara Shale. SandRidge is headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK.

SandRidge stock has lost 20.7% in the past year against the 4.7% growth of its industry.

Zacks Rank and Stock to Consider

SandRidge has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

A better-ranked stock in the oil and energy sector is Continental Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CLR) , sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Based in Oklahoma City, OK, Continental Resources is an upstream energy company. Its revenues for first-quarter 2018 are anticipated to soar 53.5% from the prior-year quarter. The company witnessed a positive average earnings surprise of 64.9% in the trailing four quarters.

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