Tracinda, the investment vehicle controlled by billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, reported holding 93,797,701 shares (34.1%). At the request of Tracinda, Delta recently repurchased certain contingent payment rights, or CPRs, held by Tracinda for $26 million. The contingent payment rights entitle Tracinda to receive about $27.9 million of the net proceeds that Delta is expected to get in connection with a court case concerning its Amber Resources of Colorado unit. In that case, Amber Resources and other energy companies sued the federal government, which had granted them offshore drilling rights in various areas along the U.S. coast, but then prevented them from drilling after passage of a law that tightly restricted such operations.

oil

low price good up potential

Tracinda, billionaire Kirk Kerkorian's investment vehicle, plans to buy $80 million of Delta Petroleum common in the company's recently announced offering. Tracinda's commitment terminates if the offering isn't done by May 14. Tracinda owns 40,464,368 shares (39.4%).

Billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian's investment vehicle, Tracinda, increased its holdings to 37,228,000 shares (36.02%), after buying 1.1 million shares on Nov. 11 and 12 at about $5.61 apiece. Tracinda purchased the shares because it believes that Delta's stock is "significantly undervalued." Tracinda supports Delta Petroleum's decision, announced Oct. 31, to consider joint-venture alternatives, as well as possible partial-sale transactions, involving the company's oil and gas interests in the Piceance Basin of Colorado.

Delta Petroleum ()

energy pick

asset play

Delta Petroleum (DPTR) was downgraded from Neutral to Sell, Merrill Lynch said. Company did not execute on its high potential exploration programs, and the stock is the most richly valued in the universe.

Upgraded by AG Edwards from Hold to Buy

"Delta Petroleum can ill afford to disappoint investors. If it does, its stock, already off this year but still at a premium to its peers, soon could slide another 20% or more."

Short