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# Expand Energy's New CEO, On Day Three, Says He Will Be 'Open To Inorganic Opportunities'
- URL: https://www.bullished.co/expand-energys-new-ceo-on-day-three-says-he-will-be-open-to-inorganic-opportunities-37cb424d/
- Published: 2026-10-28T14:32:16.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-28T14:32:16.000Z
- Description: Danny Brown says a deal must carry synergies the company is confident it can capture, as Expand also guides to $80 million of marketing EBITDA.
- Author: Matteo Parrino
- Tags: Earnings, EXE, Industry: Energy

Danny Brown, [Expand Energy](https://www.bullished.co/tag/exe/)'s new chief executive, said on the company's third-quarter earnings call Wednesday that the [EQT-Range merger](https://www.kitco.com/news/off-the-wire/2026-10-27/us-energy-firms-produce-record-natgas-2026-global-demand-soars?ref=bullished.co) does not change Expand's plans, but that he is "sure along those lines we will be open to inorganic opportunities." Any deal, he said, would need synergies the company is very confident it can capture.

## A high bar for acquisitions

Asked by a Morgan Stanley analyst about consolidation, Brown congratulated EQT and Range and said he does not think the deal "really impacts our plans internally." Interim CEO Mike Wichterich had introduced Brown as being at the start of his third day leading the company.

Brown called himself "a big continuous improvement guy," a trait he said covers the portfolio too. Anything Expand does has to make the company better and deliver strong risk-adjusted full-cycle value, he said. To reach "a market clearing price," a deal would need "a lot of synergies" the company is very confident it can capture.

He added that there are "a lot of things to do internally." Brown arrives from Cord Energy.

## From gas producer to marketer

Expand Energy produces natural gas, plus some oil and natural gas liquids, from onshore fields including the Haynesville, Marcellus and Utica shales. Wichterich said that over the past nine months it widened from an upstream gas producer into an integrated gas company, adding commercial leaders and [closing the Twin Eagle marketing acquisition](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/895126/000089512626000067/exe-ex%5F991x20260930x8kxpr.htm?ref=bullished.co) on September 16.

Chief Commercial Officer Marcel Teunissen said the company [guided to $80 million](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/895126/000089512626000067/exe-ex%5F991x20260930x8kxpr.htm?ref=bullished.co) of fourth-quarter EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, from combined marketing and commercial work, about 12 cents per MCF. He said the company has line of sight to $500 million by 2028, about 20 cents, and eventually $750 million, about 30 cents.

Teunissen said cash breakeven including dividends is about $2.80 per MCF now and would fall to about $2.60 in 2028 and $2.50 at the full run rate.

## Why Brown, and what the board wanted

Wichterich said the board wanted a leader to manage a $3 billion annual capital plan, a former public-company CEO who understands shareholders and allocates capital well. The company, he said, kept its promise to name a permanent CEO within nine months.

The call also covered cash. Wichterich said Expand spent $305 million on buybacks in the third quarter, with net debt of $4.7 billion and [leverage of 0.8 times](https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/10/27/3389592/0/en/expand-energy-corporation-reports-third-quarter-2026-results.html?ref=bullished.co). Teunissen said the company wants to lower leverage after Twin Eagle while keeping buybacks open if it sees value.

Teunissen said Expand will give a fuller update on marketing results once it has a full quarter with Twin Eagle after the fourth quarter.

### Sources

- [Document](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/895126/000089512626000067/exe-ex%5F991x20260930x8kxpr.htm?ref=bullished.co) — sec.gov
- [Expand Energy Q3 Adjusted Earnings Jump 44% as Gas Output Rises](https://finance.yahoo.com/energy/articles/expand-energy-q3-adjusted-earnings-024000065.html?ref=bullished.co) — Yahoo Finance
- [Expand Energy (EXE) Surpasses Q3 Earnings Estimates](https://finance.yahoo.com/energy/articles/expand-energy-exe-surpasses-q3-201502023.html?.tsrc=rss&ref=bullished.co) — Yahoo Finance
- [US energy firms to produce record natgas in 2026 as global demand soars | Kitco News](https://www.kitco.com/news/off-the-wire/2026-10-27/us-energy-firms-produce-record-natgas-2026-global-demand-soars?ref=bullished.co) — kitco.com
- [Expand Energy Corporation Reports Third Quarter 2026](https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/10/27/3389592/0/en/expand-energy-corporation-reports-third-quarter-2026-results.html?ref=bullished.co) — globenewswire.com

### More on Expand Energy

- [Expand Energy Net Income Slips To $519 Million, But Adjusted Profit Jumps To $338 Million](https://www.bullished.co/expand-energy-net-income-slips-to-519-million-but-adjusted-profit-jumps-to-338-million-7ab24dce/)
- [Expand Energy's $1.4 Billion Twin Eagle Deal Put $349 Million Of Goodwill On Its Books For The First Time](https://www.bullished.co/expand-energys-1-4-billion-twin-eagle-deal-put-349-million-of-goodwill-on-its-books-for-f153ca6b/)
- [Expand Energy Picks Chord's Danny Brown As CEO, With $8.75 Million Target Pay Plus Make-Whole Awards](https://www.bullished.co/expand-energy-picks-chords-danny-brown-as-ceo-with-8-75-million-target-pay-plus-make-whole-5f304a7a/)

[All Expand Energy (EXE) coverage →](https://www.bullished.co/tag/exe/)