WhiteHawk CEO Buys Into Preferred Stock He Helped Design
Related Party Preferred Raise
Company Background
WhiteHawk Minerals Corp. (NYSE: WHK) is a natural gas-focused mineral and royalty company that completed its IPO on June 10, 2026, raising gross proceeds of $200.2 million. The company owns interests across roughly 3.6 million gross unit acres in the Marcellus, Utica and Haynesville shale basins, with second-quarter 2026 net production averaging 70.0 MMcfe/d, up 57% year over year.
The company posted a net loss of $39.2 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026, though management attributed the bulk of that to non-recurring items: a $21.7 million loss on debt extinguishment tied to the IPO refinancing and $15.8 million in management and incentive fees related to the internalization of its external manager. Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $20.7 million. As of June 30, net debt stood at $55.5 million.
Since its June IPO, WhiteHawk has been an active acquirer, signing nine mineral and royalty transactions totaling $111.8 million. Chairman, President and CEO Daniel Herz — who previously founded Falcon Minerals, which eventually merged into Sitio Royalties and sold to Viper Energy for $4.1 billion — is the company's public face and controlling strategic voice.
What Was Disclosed
WhiteHawk completed its previously announced acquisition of Marcellus and Haynesville shale mineral interests from Three Rivers Royalty II and Cypress Mineral Partners on September 25, 2026, paying approximately $96.8 million after customary price adjustments from the original $105 million contract price. The deal was funded through a combination of the preferred stock proceeds described below, the Class A common stock raise that closed September 21, and cash on hand.