America’s richest oilman, Harold Hamm, wants to take his company Continental Resources private

The stock was headed for its highest close since Sept. 17, 2014, when it closed at $75.82. Shares of Continental have gained 64% so far this year, contrasting with losses of more than 21% for the S&P 500 index. SPX, -0.47%

The family already owns about 83% of the Oklahoma City-based company. The offer is not binding and the board will evaluate it.

That could leave the door open for competing bids from peers, analysts at Truist said in a note Tuesday.

The company is worth “at least our $95/share price target,” the analysts said.

It will be “worth watching” what a potential outside bidder would offer for the company, although in a letter to employees Hamm assured that there’d be little change to compensation and operations, which “somewhat lowers the expectation of a winning outside bid,” the analysts said.

In the same letter, Hamm, who founded the company in 1967, said that there’s lack of support for public oil and gas companies and that a private model would allow for more flexibility especially around exploration.

A non-binding offer “has room for negotiation,” analysts at Siebert Williams Shank said in their note. The analysts, who have a $80 price target on the stock, said they expect the shares to trade around the $70 take-private offer.

Hamm, the U.S.’s richest oilman and 63rd richest American, according to Forbes, and his family have owned more than 70% since the company went public in 2007.

They increased their stakes through downturns and more recently through buybacks, analysts at Cowen said in their note.

Hamm stepped down as Continental’s chief executive in 2019, but remained as chairman.