Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
Thank you. Today's question-and-answer session will be conducted electronically. (Operator Instructions). Our first question comes from Faisel Khan from Citigroup. Please go ahead, sir.
Faisel Khan - Citigroup
Good morning, guys. Just a couple of questions, how extreme were the issues presented in the credit markets that they caused you to look at the risk associated with the potential structural change in the company. Can you give some more color around that?
Steven Malcolm
Well, probably not as much color as you would like, but there is no question that the changes that we've seen over the last few months certainly had an impact on our decision. And I mean, because of the unprecedented financial and commodity market uncertainty and we don't know where commodity prices are headed. We're heartened by the fact that strip prices are a little better in 2010.But on the other hand there are forecasts out that we are going to see Henry Hub prices at 250.
So unprecedented uncertainty and so I think it's fairly clear that the market values more highly companies that are larger, that are more financially diverse, that have stronger balance sheets, that have stronger credit ratings. And then so those are some of the reasons that we've decided, what we've decided.
Faisel Khan - Citigroup
Okay, fair enough. And in your whole presentation today, put me to '09 guidance and you guys talked about some of the headwinds from higher cost from pension and insurance. But is there any way to cut cost out of the system too. There's been fair amount of cost inflation kind of across the board at all three of your segments over the last couple of years, is there any way to kind of reduce the cost structure of the company over the next 12 to 18 months?
Steven Malcolm
Well, there is a great tension between simply taking or steer cost saving steps versus staying positioned for the future. And we do anticipate that at some point there will be a recovery and there will be stronger commodity prices that will translate into good things for our company. And we spend a lot of time building the appropriate organization so that we can best take advantage of those opportunities.
Having said that, we're looking at, obviously looking at taking steps to reduce cost and we're right now I would call at more of the low hanging fruit. We gave up our apartment in New York City for example. Not that big a deal but I think inappropriate step. We're cutting back travel, where it make sense for us to do so. We've negotiated hard and will continue to negotiate hard with third-party vendors. So I can assure you that we're looking very closely at our cost structure.
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