On August 6, Granite Ridge Resources (NYSE:GRNT) reported second quarter results that showed a company growing production, raising its dividend payout schedule, and still working through a costlier operating environment underneath the headline numbers. Net income climbed to $30 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, up from $25.1 million a year earlier, while the board tacked on a new quarterly dividend declaration on top of the results. For a small oil and gas operator that says it is still investing ahead of cash flow, the quarter offers a useful test of whether that strategy is paying off yet.
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Drilling, Deals, And A Steady Payout
Production rose 1% to 32,044 barrels of oil equivalent per day, and the company kept that growth coming from more than just existing wells. Granite Ridge turned 7.2 net wells online during the quarter, up from 4.9 net wells a year earlier, and closed 27 acquisitions across the Permian and Appalachian Basins that added 21.9 net undeveloped locations to its inventory. CEO Tyler Farquharson said the company replaced that inventory faster than it developed it in the first half of 2026, using its Operated Partnership platform, including Admiral Permian Resources, to source deals directly through partner relationships rather than through broadly marketed packages.
Every deal is underwritten to a full-cycle return above 25% at strip pricing, according to Farquharson. Adjusted EBITDAX rose to $79.6 million from $75.4 million a year ago, and the balance sheet stayed conservative, with net debt sitting at just 1.4 times trailing twelve-month Adjusted EBITDAX and $293.8 million of total liquidity on hand. The board declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.11 per share, payable September 14 to shareholders of record as of August 28, matching the payout made during the quarter itself.
Costs Rise As Ownership Shifts
The gap between Granite Ridge’s headline and adjusted numbers is worth sitting with. Net income of $30 million compares with Adjusted Net Income of just $11.1 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, once non-cash and special items are stripped out. Lease operating expenses told a similar story, climbing 47% on a per-barrel basis to $10.27 per Boe, driven by higher saltwater disposal costs, increased water cuts, flowback operations, surface equipment rentals, and contract labor. Commodity pricing cut in different directions too. The average realized oil price jumped to $93.93 per barrel from $61.41 a year earlier, but natural gas fell to $1.12 per Mcf from $2.32.
