In a thunderclap deal reverberating across the oil and gas sector, Viper Energy Inc. unveiled Tuesday its agreement to acquire Sitio Royalties Corp. for a staggering $4.1 billion, including $1.1 billion in net debt—an all-stock move that promises to reshape the mineral and royalty interests landscape.
The acquisition, spearheaded by legal titans Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz for Viper and Vinson & Elkins LLP for Sitio, is being hailed as a defining moment in the consolidation of the highly fragmented royalty sector. The combined company is poised to dominate acreage and influence in the prolific Permian Basin and beyond.
Wall Street Responds: Sitio Shares Soar on Merger News
Viper, a subsidiary of Diamondback Energy Inc., is offering Sitio shareholders an implied $19.41 per share, based on Viper’s June 2 closing price. Markets reacted swiftly. Sitio’s stock surged over 13% to $19.64 in Tuesday’s early trading, nearly matching the offer price and signaling investor enthusiasm for the deal.
In total, the merger combines 34,300 net royalty acres from Sitio—25,300 of which are rooted in the Permian—with Viper’s existing portfolio, propelling the combined entity to 85,700 royalty acres in the Permian Basin alone.
“This is a kingmaker moment in the world of energy royalties,” said one industry analyst. “Viper and Sitio just became the heavyweight champion of minerals.”
