- The oil price slump has created dozens of oil and gas "zombies," a term used to describe companies that have just enough money to pay interest on high debt levels but not enough to drill enough new wells to replace older ones that are drying out.
- Some two dozen oil and gas companies whose debt Moody's rates at BBB- or lower broadly fit the description; a Reuters report mentions SandRidge Energy (SD +2.4%), Comstock Resources (CRK -1.9%) and Goodrich Petroleum (GDP +5.4%) as some of the group's more prominent members.
- "SandRidge is an example where they have enough cash on the balance sheet to service debt for next three years and likely can't grow their assets in this price environment," says Carlyle Group's Michael Roberts.
- CapitalOne projects GDP will hit a liquidity shortfall by the end of 2017, and analysts at Baird have said CRK's oil reserves are worth less than the debt it owes.