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22 Nov 2006

Hedge Fund buys 4 million shares in Pogo Producing

Activist hedge fund Third Point LLC, said in a statement on Tuesday that the company has acquired a 7.2% stake of U.S. oil and gas producer Pogo Producing Co.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the hedge fund said it also bought options to purchase 200,000 additional shares in addition to the 4 million shares of Pogo common stock.

Third Point, which has about $4 billion in assets under management, holds stakes in several publicly traded companies. The hedge fund is New York based and is known for taking activist positions. The fund, run by Chief Investment Officer Danies Loeb, has frequently been a loud critic of the companies in which it invests.

In the filing with the SEC, Third Point said it believes Pogo "represents an attractive investment." The fund also said it "may suggest or take a position with respect to potential changes in the operations, strategy, management or capital structure of such companies as a means of enhancing shareholder value."

Pogo Producing Company explores for, develops and produces oil and natural gas. Headquartered in Houston, Pogo owns approximately 4,800,000 gross leasehold acres in major oil and gas provinces in North America, 6,354,000 acres in New Zealand and 1,480,000 acres in Vietnam. Pogo common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “PPP.”