ConocoPhillips CEO reflects on past mergers and acquisitions, saying “We’ve already experienced it”

ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance recently responded to questions about the company’s potential involvement in the wave of mergers and acquisitions sweeping the oil and gas industry, which saw about $65 billion in deals in 2025. Lance emphasized that ConocoPhillips has already completed significant M&A transactions and has no identified strategic gaps in its global portfolio. As he stated during a conference call discussing the company’s fourth-quarter results and 2026 outlook, “We’ve done our heavy lifting on the M&A side…I’ve never seen the portfolio in better shape and [there are] really no strategic gaps that we can identify…I can see the rationale for some of the M&A activity and in terms of capturing the synergy. But we’ve been there, done that.”

ConocoPhillips recently completed the integration of Marathon Oil, which it acquired in late 2024 for $16.5 billion plus the assumption of $4.6 billion in debt. This acquisition aimed to strengthen ConocoPhillips’ presence in the Delaware, Eagle Ford, and Bakken basins. The successful integration of Marathon Oil resulted in over $1 billion in annualized synergies, contributing to the company’s continued growth.

Despite fluctuations in the market, ConocoPhillips reported impressive fourth-quarter earnings, with net profits exceeding $1.4 billion on total revenues of $14.2 billion. The addition of former Marathon Oil assets has boosted ConocoPhillips’ Lower 48 reserves to more than 2 decades worth of production. Lower 48 production accounted for 60% of the company’s total segment earnings over the past two years, reaching nearly 1.44 MMobe/d in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared to 1.31 MMboe/d in late 2024. Overall output in the fourth quarter was 2.32 MMboe/d versus 2.18 MMboe/d in the same period the previous year.

Looking ahead, ConocoPhillips anticipates a modest increase in total production to 2.33-2.36 MMboe/d in 2026. The company’s financial strategy will prioritize efficiency, with a reduced capital spending budget of approximately $12 billion for the year, marking a decrease of nearly $600 million from 2025. Adjusted operating costs are expected to be around $10.2 billion, $400 million less than the previous year.

On February 5, shares of ConocoPhillips (COP) experienced a more than 2% decline, trading at around $104.80. Despite this, the stock has shown a notable increase of over 10% in the past six months, leading to a rise in the company’s market capitalization to more than $130 billion. As the company continues to focus on operational efficiency and optimization, it remains poised for further growth and success in the industry.