Abraxas Petroleum Corp. (NASDAQ: AXAS) bought, sold and swapped its way to a 973-net acre acquisition in the Delaware Basin, the company said July 14, as it chips away toward a goal of a 10,000-acre position.

In all, Abraxas said it had signed and closed deals totaling $39.2 million since May. That includes the new Delaware Basin deal; an agreement to sell a portion of the company’s Powder River assets for $4.6 million; and the closing of a Ward County, Texas, purchase for about 6% less than anticipated.

Mike Kelly, an analyst at Seaport Global Securities LLC, said the Delaware deal works out to an estimated $14.2 million and increases the company’s position in the basin by 10% to 8,497 net acres. The seller was not disclosed.

“We estimate the deal was struck at an attractive $14,000/acre, and in our opinion, on very favorable terms,” Kelly said, adding the deal also fits Seaport’s view that Delaware A&D is cooling off as crude prices have softened. A number of private-equity back Delaware companies considering a sale or marketing assets are backing away from the deal table for now, he said.

Abraxas, based in San Antonio, said its purchase includes 853 net acres with Bone Spring/Wolfcamp rights and an average 130 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) of production, 81% natural gas. The assets consist of 445 net acres within Abraxas’ existing Caprito leasehold, 172 acres in Ward and 356 net acres in Pecos, Reeves and Winkler counties, Texas.

The acquisition costs include $4.3 million in cash, 2 million shares of Abraxas stock and Abraxas’ 12,188 net-acre Pecos County Ranch called Cayanosa Draw—as well as half of its mineral rights there in the Cayanosa. The cash portion will be paid for with proceeds from the company’s Powder River Basin sale to an undisclosed buyer.

Abraxas said it recently signed a definitive agreement to sell certain Powder River Basin assets but retained about 948 net HBP acres in the high-value Porcupine/Frazier Federal area, which the company plans to sell in the near future.

Abraxas also recently closed its Ward acquisition, announced in May. After adjustments for title defects, the company acquired 1,894 net acres for $22.2 million, about 6% less than the initial agreement for 2,008 net acres at $22.2 million. Bob Watson, Abraxas president and CEO, said when the deal was first announced, price per acre was about $10,000.

While Delaware deals continue to flow, they’re doing so at a lower cost than in the past 18 months following an A&D heat wave that turned the Permian up to broil. In one case, acreage cost up to $49,000 per acre.

In late June, however, Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc. (NASDAQ: CRZO) agreed to purchase 16,488 net Delaware Basin acres in Reeves and Ward from ExL Petroleum Management LLC for $648 million—about $22,300 per acre.

Following the Carrizo deal, which Kelly called a “solid discount for what we view as extremely high-quality Delaware acreage,” Seaport spoke with a number of private companies about deal activity in the basin.

Companies such as Three Rivers Operating III, one of the last large Delaware Basin acreage holders, has been up for sale since April as have several other companies, either overtly marketed or quietly shopped, including Primexx Energy Partners, Forge Energy, Ajax Resources and others.

Kelly said the sales have apparently been delayed as crude prices have dipped.

“In some cases, we heard that potential buyers have balked at raising equity in front of certain deals in which upfront cash was a prerequisite,” Kelly said. “As it pertains to the ExL/ CRZO deal, we think a major driver to proceed with the sale could have related to ExL needing to run four rigs to hold acreage.”

Watson said the company’s latest transaction will meaningfully increase its core in and around its Caprito position in the Delaware Basin.

Kelly said that Abraxas is rapidly closing in on its goal of buying 10,000 net acres and, with A&D sliding somewhat in the Permian, “we think the company could now have its eyes on achieving a footprint of 15,000 net acres” through similar bolt-on acquisitions.

Watson said Abraxas continues to search for similar transactions for further expansion.

“Importantly, this transaction was accomplished while preserving our balance sheet via an asset swap and use of equity,” Watson said. “Our divestitures in the Powder River Basin and Cayanosa Draw mark an important shift for Abraxas as we continue to focus on our high-quality unconventional asset base in the Permian Basin, Williston Basin and in South Texas.”

The company said its borrowing base will remain unchanged at $115 million and that it would increase by $10 million its capex to $120 million. As of March, the company had about $97 million in liquidity.

Stephens Inc. represented Abraxas in the sale of the Powder River Basin properties, which is scheduled to close in July. The new Delaware deal is expected to close in August.

Darren Barbee can be reached at dbarbee@hartenergy.com.