Exxon Mobil struck a nearly $60 billion agreement Wednesday to buy Pioneer Natural Resources PXD in the largest oil-and-gas deal in two decades, tying the energy giant’s future to fossil fuels.
The deal, at $253 a share, values Pioneer at an almost 7% premium to its closing market value of about $55.4 billion Tuesday. It cements Exxon’s status as the dominant player in the U.S. fracking industry, now centered in West Texas, where Pioneer has more places to drill than almost all of its rivals.
Shares in Pioneer rose more than 1% Wednesday. Exxon’s stock dropped less than 4%.
Read the full story on The Wall Street Journal here.