Buy Chesapeake stock, natural gas merger coming at right time, Barron’s says

Take the combination of two inexpensive natural-gas stocks, logical cost savings, and the probability of rising commodity prices, and you have a deal that’s well worth a look. That would be the merger of Chesapeake Energy (CHK) and Southwestern Energy (SWN), which agreed earlier this month to combine in an all-stock deal, Nicholas Jasinski reports in this week’s edition of Barron’s. Chesapeake’s stock has slid 2% since the deal was first speculated about in the press on Jan. 5, amid volatility in natural-gas prices. The merger, though, makes a lot of sense, the author says.