EQT acquires Range Resources: price, structure and what it means for buyers of energy service businesses

EQT Corporation

acquires

Range Resources Corporation

Structure

All stock

Exchange ratio

0.987 EQT per Range share

Ownership

73% EQT / 27% Range

Combined EV

Over $50B

Synergies

$325M a year

Expected close

Q1 2027

Published 27 October 2026 · Deal announced 2026-10-26 · Acquisitions.com Deal Reports

This report is for anyone who buys, owns or plans to sell a business that serves the oil and gas field, and for anyone who wants to see how a large merger is paid for with shares instead of cash. It covers what EQT bought, how the deal is built, and why. By the end you will know which parts of this deal apply to a small buyer and which do not.

What EQT bought

Range Resources is an independent U.S. producer of natural gas and natural gas liquids. It works in the Appalachian Basin, the same region where EQT drills. Range is based in Fort Worth, Texas.

EQT is already a large gas producer. The release says the two together will have more than 9 Bcfe a day of net production. That is billions of cubic feet of gas equivalent each day.

The release also lists more than 30 years of drilling inventory, nearly 3 million net acres, and more than 3,700 miles of pipes and other midstream assets. The release gives these as combined figures. It does not split them by company here, and we do not add a split.

What EQT paid and how

EQT pays no cash for the shares. Each Range share turns into 0.987 of an EQT share. Holders get cash only for fractions of a share.

After closing, EQT holders will own about 73% of the company and Range holders about 27%. The release puts the combined company's enterprise value above $50 billion. That figure is the size of the merged company. It is not the price paid for Range, and the release gives no single price for Range.

The release does not state a premium. EQT expects credit metrics in line with a BBB rating at closing.

The advisors are named. Citi and RBC Capital Markets advise EQT, with Kirkland & Ellis as legal counsel. Evercore, as lead, and J.P. Morgan Securities advise Range, with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher as legal counsel.

Why it fits EQT's plan

The case EQT makes is scale in one basin. Both companies drill the same rock. One owner can share crews, pipes and buyers for the gas, and cut cost per unit.

EQT puts a number on this. It expects $325 million a year in base synergies within two years, and sees a path to more than $600 million a year over the long term. It also projects about $20 billion of free cash flow over five years at recent prices. These are forecasts from the buyer, not results.

Toby Z. Rice, EQT's President and CEO, said the deal joins "two of the highest-quality, longest-duration asset bases in North America". Dennis L. Degner, Range's President and CEO, will join the EQT board with one other Range director. EQT's own team will run the combined company.

Read together, this is a cost and scale deal. EQT is not buying a new product. It is buying more of what it already does, next door, and planning to run it cheaper.

What it means for small buyers and sellers

You are not EQT. But three ideas in this deal carry down to the $500K to $50M revenue businesses most of our clients look at.

Same region, same work, lower cost. EQT buys a producer in its own basin so it can share crews and assets. A small buyer does the same when an HVAC or field service company buys a rival in the same towns. The trucks, dispatch and office can be shared. This is the logic of a roll-up, and it works best when the businesses sit close together.

Paying in shares means the seller stays in. Range owners do not cash out. They become 27% owners of a bigger company. In small deals, the version of this is rollover equity. The seller keeps a slice of the new company instead of taking all cash. It lowers the cash a buyer needs and keeps the seller tied to the result.

Synergies are a forecast, not a fact. EQT names a dollar figure for savings. Many small buyers do the same in a pitch to a lender or investor. Lenders tend to price a deal on today's earnings, not on savings that have not happened yet. Keep them apart in your model.

If you own a business that serves gas producers, a merger like this can change who your customer is. Two buyers of your services may become one. That is worth knowing before you plan a sale. Owners can book a free first call, and buyers can start at /buy. Moran Pober has advised buyers and sellers of small and mid-sized businesses for over ten years and built and sold Rollups.com.

What to watch

Watch the two shareholder votes. Range holders vote on the merger agreement. EQT holders vote on issuing the new shares. The proxy filing will give more detail on how the ratio was set.

Watch the regulators. The release says the deal needs regulatory approvals and clearances but does not give a timetable.

Watch the close. EQT expects it in the first quarter of 2027. Until then, Range runs as its own public company.

Finally, watch the synergy target. EQT has said $325 million a year within two years. Its later reports will show whether the savings arrive.