The second quarter of 2026 was a tale of two commodity markets for U.S. exploration and production companies. A 29% quarter-over-quarter increase in WTI oil prices to $92.53/bbl provided a more powerful tailwind for Oil-Weighted E&Ps, who experienced a pre-tax operating profit turnaround with a war-driven late Q1 price surge. In stark contrast, plunging natural gas prices wounded Gas-Weighted producers after bountiful Q1 results. In today’s RBN blog, we review the Q2 2026 results of the 37 publicly traded E&Ps we cover and analyze the remarkably wide performance gap they reveal.
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The oil price climb (gray line and right axis in Figure 1 below) from the Iran conflict and a spike in natural gas prices driven by an unusually cold winter across the eastern U.S. combined to double the average pre-tax profits for our 37-company universe from Q4 2025 to Q1 2026 to $15.12/boe, the highest result since mid-2023. The continuing rise in oil prices spurred another 31% increase in pre-tax operating profits in Q2 2026 to $19.83/boe (far-right blue bar and left axis), the richest since 2022. Cash flow also reached a post-2022 peak, increasing 8% to $29.72/boe (far-right orange bar and left axis). Upstream revenues rose 6% to $44.67/boe.
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About the song
“Turn Turn Turn” was written by Pete Seeger in the late 1950s, with the lyrics quoting the first eight verses of the third chapter of the biblical Book of Ecclesiastes. The song was first released under the title “To Everything There is a Season” on the Limeliters’ Folk Matinee album, released in 1962. The song’s author Pete Seeger released it later in the same year on his The Bitter and the Sweet album. The Byrds recorded the song in 78 takes at Columbia Studios in Hollywood in September-October 1965, with Terry Melcher producing. it was released as a single in October 1965 and went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart. The song prominently features Jim (Roger) McGuinn’s 12-string Rickenbacker guitar. It is the first cut on side one of The Byrds’ second studio album of the same name. Personnel on the record were: Jim (Roger) McGuinn (lead 12-string guitar, vocals), Gene Clark (rhythm guitar, tambourine, vocals), David Crosby (rhythm guitar, vocals), Chris Hillman (bass), and Michael Clarke (drums).
Turn Turn Turn was The Byrds’ second studio album and was produced by Terry Melcher. Released in December 1965, the album went to #17 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart. This album would help put The Byrds at the top of the folk rock movement they helped create. The album would be the last to feature full participation of original member Gene Clark, who would leave the band in 1966.
The Byrds were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1964. The band went through 11 members until its final dissolution in 1973, with Jim (Roger) McGuinn being the only original member in its lineup. They released their reunion, and final album, Byrds, with all original members in March 1973. It received poor reviews, and went to #20 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart. The Byrds were pioneers in the folk rock, and later in the country rock genre. The Byrds released 12 studio albums, three live albums, six EPs, 47 compilation albums and 29 singles. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. Gene Clark died in 1991, Michael Clarke in 1993, and David Crosby in 2023. McGuinn and Hillman remain active in various solo and band projects to this date. Hillman was a founding member of The Flying Burrito Brothers and The Desert Rose Band. Roger McGuinn performs as a solo artist, and will be appearing at various venues across the U.S. beginning in September.
"About the Song" -- written by Mickey McMahan , RBN Director of Musicology
