Here's what I know so far - it's a primarily US focused oil and gas production business, with a UK corporate base for capital raising and governance. It was publicly censured in June for reckless conduct under the tougher rules introduced by the London Stock Exchange in February last year. It apparently breached Rules 10 and 11 by repeatedly failing to disclose price sensitive information without delay in respect of operational problems at two of its key wells.
The blip in the share price doesn't seem related, rather it reflects the fact that the Company consolidated its share capital on a 6 old for 1 new basis.
Since then, the board has been changed, and Steve Gutteridge, chairman since April last year, described Meridian as “a fresh company that has turned a corner. The legacies of the past have now been put to bed”. The Orion well in Michigan, subject of some of the rule breaches, is now producing up to 5m cubic feet of gas a day.
In terms of recent results, it seems be doing well and enjoying strong cash generation despite lower energy prices, with continued good production levels and the benefit of valuable hedging contracts. These contracts extend into 2010 for natural gas and 2011 for oil.
