Diamondback Vows Slow Growth, Fewer Rigs After Endeavor Deal (1)

Diamondback Energy Inc. will borrow a page from the shale-consolidation playbook by cutting drilling rigs after its acquisition of rival Endeavor Energy Resources LP, a move that will help satisfy investors who prefer payouts over production growth.

The explorers, today running a total of 26 rigs in the Permian Basin, will see that count whittled down to between 20 and 22 over time, Kaes Van’t Hof, chief financial officer at Diamondback, said Monday on a conference call. They’ll be more efficient, however, meaning output will rise modestly despite the curtailed rig count.

The combined company expects to produce about ...