Quicksilver Resources Popped: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of natural gas producer Quicksilver Resources (NYSE: KWK  ) rocketed as high 19% in early trading on a possible sale of the company.

So what: On Friday, Quicksilver received a letter from the company's controlling Darden family and Quicksilver LP, expressing interest in strategic alternatives for the company. One of those options includes taking Quicksilver private for a "substantial premium," so it's no surprise investors are looking to squeeze out a profit on the difference.

Now what: When you make 20% in one morning, taking some dough off the table just seems like the prudent thing to do -- especially when the surge comes on takeover talk. While Quicksilver may end up getting taken private at much higher prices, the upside may not be worth it given the risk of negotiations falling through. With the likes of Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK  ) , Anadarko (NYSE: APC  ) , and Devon (NYSE: DVN  ) trading at verifiably cheap prices, there's not exactly a shortage of attractive places to roll over that natural gas bet.

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