Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]

The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Adams Resources & Energy, Inc., a Delaware corporation (‟ARE”) together with its wholly owned subsidiaries (the ‟Company”) after elimination of all intercompany accounts and transactions. The impact on the accompanying financial statements of events occurring after December 31, 2015 was evaluated through the date of issuance of these financial statements.

Nature of Operations

The Company is engaged in the business of crude oil marketing, tank truck transportation of liquid chemicals, and oil and gas exploration and production. Its primary area of operation is within the Gulf Coast region of the United States.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include any Treasury bill, commercial paper, money market fund or federal funds with maturity of 90 days or less. Depending on cash availability and market conditions, investments in corporate and municipal bonds, which are classified as investments in marketable securities, may also be made from time to time. Cash and cash equivalents are maintained with major financial institutions and such deposits may exceed the amount of federally backed insurance provided. While the Company regularly monitors the financial stability of such institutions, cash and cash equivalents ultimately remain at risk subject to the financial viability of such institutions.

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

Accounts receivable are the product of sales of crude oil and natural gas and the sale of trucking services. Marketing segment wholesale level sales of crude oil comprise in excess of 90 percent of total accounts receivable and under industry practices, such items are ‟settled” and paid in cash within 20 days of the month following the transaction date. For such receivables, an allowance for doubtful accounts is determined based on specific account identification. The balance of accounts receivable results primarily from the sale of trucking services. For this component of receivables, the allowance for doubtful accounts is determined based on a review of specific accounts combined with a review of the general status of the aging of all accounts.

Inventory

Inventory consists of crude oil held in storage tanks and at third-party pipelines as part of the Company’s crude oil marketing operations. Crude oil inventory is carried at the lower of average cost or market. Due to declining crude oil prices, inventory valuation losses were as follows (in thousands):

		2015				2014
Inventory valuation loss		$	5,357			$	14,247

Prepayments

The components of prepayments and other are as follows (in thousands):

	December 31,
	2015		2014
Cash collateral deposits for commodity purchases	$	167	$	7,872
Insurance premiums		1,609		2,316
Rents, license and other		813		752
	$	2,589	$	10,940

Property and Equipment

Expenditures for major renewals and betterments are capitalized, and expenditures for maintenance and repairs are expensed as incurred. Interest costs incurred in connection with major capital expenditures are capitalized and amortized over the lives of the related assets. When properties are retired or sold, the related cost and accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization is removed from the accounts and any gain or loss is reflected in earnings.

Oil and gas exploration and development expenditures are accounted for in accordance with the successful efforts method of accounting. Direct costs of acquiring developed or undeveloped leasehold acreage, including lease bonus, brokerage and other fees, are capitalized. Exploratory drilling costs are initially capitalized until the properties are evaluated and determined to be either productive or nonproductive. Such evaluations are made on a quarterly basis. If an exploratory well is determined to be nonproductive, the costs of drilling the well are charged to expense. Costs incurred to drill and complete development wells, including dry holes, are capitalized. As of December 31, 2015 and 2014, the Company had no unevaluated or ‟suspended” exploratory drilling costs.

Depreciation, depletion and amortization of the cost of proved oil and gas properties is calculated using the unit-of-production method. The reserve base or denominator used to calculate depreciation, depletion and amortization for leasehold acquisition costs and the cost to acquire proved properties is the sum of proved developed reserves and proved undeveloped reserves. For lease and well equipment, development costs and successful exploration drilling costs, the reserve base includes only proved developed reserves. The numerator for such calculation is actual production volumes for the period. All other property and equipment is depreciated using the straight-line method over the estimated average useful lives of three to twenty years.

The Company reviews its long-lived assets for impairment whenever there is evidence that the carrying value of such assets may not be recoverable. Any impairment recognized is permanent and may not be restored. Producing oil and gas properties are reviewed on a field-by-field basis. For properties requiring impairment, the fair value is estimated based on an internal discounted cash flow model. Cash flows are developed based on estimated future production and prices and then discounted using a market based rate of return consistent with that used by the Company in evaluating cash flows for other assets of a similar nature.

On a quarterly basis, management evaluates the carrying value of non-producing oil and gas leasehold properties and may deem them impaired based on remaining lease term, area drilling activity and the Company’s plans for the property. This fair value measure depends highly on management’s assessment of the likelihood of continued exploration efforts in a given area. Therefore, such data inputs are categorized as ‟unobservable or Level 3” inputs. (See ‟Fair Value Measurements” below). Importantly, this fair value measure only applies to the write-down of capitalized costs and will never result in an increase to reported earnings.

Impairment provisions including in oil and gas segment operating losses were as follows (in thousands):

	2015		2014		2013
Producing property impairments	$	10,324	$	4,001	$	1,373
Non-producing property impairments	$	1,758	$	4,008	$	1,257

Fair value measurements for producing oil and gas properties that were subject to fair value impairment for the years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014 summarize as follows (in thousands):

	Producing Properties
	Subject to Fair
	Value Impairment
	2015			2014
Net book value at January 1	$	18,744		$	10,180
Property additions		2,117			469
Depletion taken		(4,454	)		(1,792	)
Impairment valuation loss		(10,324	)		(4,001	)
Net book value at December 31	$	6,083		$	4,856

Capitalized costs for non-producing oil and gas leasehold interests currently represent approximately three percent of remaining unamortized oil and gas property carrying costs and categorize as follows (in thousands):

	December 31,		December 31,
	2015		2014

Napoleonville Louisiana acreage	$	49	$	48
South Texas project acreage		-		357
Wyoming and other acreage		182		554
Total Non-producing Leasehold Costs	$	231	$	959

Since the Company is generally not the operator of its oil and gas property interests, it does not maintain underlying detail acreage data and is dependent on the operator when determining which specific acreage will ultimately be drilled. However, the capitalized cost detail on a property-by-property basis is reviewed by management and deemed impaired if development is not anticipated prior to lease expiration. Onshore leasehold periods are normally three years and may contain renewal options. Capitalized cost activity and fair value measurements on non-producing leasehold were as follows (in thousands):

	Leasehold Costs
	2015			2014
Net book value January 1	$	959		$	4,906
Leasehold additions		106			865
Advanced royalty payment		529			-
In-process wells suspended		395			73
Property sales		-			(877	)
Impairments valuation loss		(1,758	)		(4,008	)
Net book value December 31	$	231		$	959

During 2014, the Company sold substantially all of its producing property interests in Oklahoma. Proceeds totaled $1,731,000 and the Company recorded a $1,149,000 pre-tax gain from this sale. Also during 2014 the Company sold one-half of its interest in sections of a South Texas project interest. Proceeds totaled $1,509,000 and the Company recorded a $632,000 pre-tax gain from this sale. Certain other oil and gas property interests were also sold in 2014 for proceeds totaling $822,000 and gains totaling $747,000.

The Company sold certain used trucks and equipment from its marketing and transportation segments and recorded net pre-tax gains as follows (in thousands):

		2015				2014				2013
Sales of used trucks and equipment		$	535			$	1,028			$	683

Cash Deposits and Other Assets

The Company has established certain deposits to support participation in its liability insurance program and remittance of state crude oil severance taxes and other state collateral deposits. Insurance collateral deposits are invested at the discretion of the Company’s insurance carrier and such investments primarily consist of intermediate term federal government bonds and bonds backed by federal agencies. This fair value measure relies on inputs from quoted prices for similar assets and is thus categorized as a ‟Level 2” valuation in the fair value hierarchy. Components of cash deposits and other assets are as follows (in thousands):

	As of December 31,
	2015		2014
Insurance collateral deposits	$	6,531	$	4,536
State collateral deposits		140		155
Materials and supplies		292		307
	$	6,963	$	4,998

Revenue Recognition

Certain commodity purchase and sale contracts utilized by the Company’s marketing business generally qualify as derivative instruments with certain specifically identified crude oil contracts designated as trading activities. From the time of contract origination, such trading activity contracts are marked-to-market and recorded on a net revenue basis in the accompanying consolidated financial statements.

Most all crude oil purchase and sale contracts qualify and are designated as non-trading activities and the Company considers such contracts as normal purchases and sales activity. For normal purchases and sales the Company’s customers are invoiced monthly based upon contractually agreed upon terms with revenue recognized in the month in which the physical product is delivered to the customer. Such sales are recorded gross in the financial statements because the Company takes title, has risk of loss for the products, is the primary obligor for the purchase, establishes the sale price independently with a third party, and maintains credit risk associated with the sale of the product.

Certain crude oil contracts may be with a single counterparty to provide for similar quantities of crude oil to be bought and sold at different locations. These contracts are entered into for a variety of reasons, including effecting the transportation of the commodity, to minimize credit exposure, and/or to meet the competitive demands of the customer. Such buy/sell arrangements are reflected on a net revenue basis in the accompanying consolidated financial statements. Reporting such crude oil contracts on a gross revenue basis would increase the Company’s reported revenues as follows (in thousands):

		2015				2014				2013
Revenue gross-up		$	480,111			$	1,272,034			$	1,602,626

Transportation segment customers are invoiced, and the related revenue is recognized as the service is provided. Oil and gas revenue from the Company’s interests in producing wells is recognized as title and physical possession of the oil and gas passes to the purchaser.

Sales of Long-lived Assets

Sales of long-lived assets

Gains and losses from the sale or disposal of long-lived assets that do not meet the criteria for presentation as a discontinued operation are presented in the accompanying financial statements as a component of operating earnings.

Letter of Credit Facility

The Company maintains a Credit and Security Agreement with Wells Fargo Bank to provide a $60 million stand-by letter of credit facility used to support crude oil purchases within the marketing segment. This facility is collateralized by the eligible accounts receivable within the segment and certain marketing and transportation equipment. Stand-by letters of credit issued were as follows (in thousands):

	As of December 31,
	2015		2014
Stand-by letters of credit	$	1,000	$	15,300

The issued stand-by letters of credit are cancelled as the underlying purchase obligations are satisfied by cash payment when due. The letter of credit facility places certain restrictions on the Company’s Gulfmark Energy, Inc. subsidiary. Such restrictions included the maintenance of a combined 1.1 to 1.0 current ratio and the maintenance of positive net earnings excluding inventory valuation changes, as defined, among other restrictions. The Company is currently in compliance with all such financial covenants.

Statement of Cash Flows

There were no significant non-cash financing activities in any of the periods reported. Statement of cash flow items include the following (in thousands):

	2015		2014		2013

Interest paid	$	13	$	2	$	24

Federal and state tax paid	$	6,197	$	8,169	$	9,949

State tax refund	$	-	$	18	$	4

Capitalized amounts included in property and equipment that were not included in amounts reported for cash additions in the Statements of Cash Flows for the applicable report dates were as follows (in thousands):

	As of December 31,
	2015		2014		2013

Property and equipment additions	$	1,707	$	1,137	$	1,507

Earnings per Share

Earnings per share are based on the weighted average number of shares of common stock and potentially dilutive common stock shares outstanding during the period. The weighted average number of shares outstanding was 4,217,596 for 2015, 2014 and 2013. There were no potentially dilutive securities outstanding during those periods.

Share-Based Payments

During the periods presented herein, the Company had no stock-based employee compensation plans, nor any other share-based payment arrangements.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Examples of significant estimates used in the accompanying consolidated financial statements include the oil and gas reserve volumes forming the foundation for calculating depreciation, depletion and amortization and for estimating cash flows when assessing impairment triggers and when estimating values associated with oil and gas properties. Other examples include revenue accruals, the provision for bad debts, insurance related accruals, income tax permanent and timing differences, contingencies, and valuation of fair value contracts.

Income Taxes

Income taxes are accounted for using the asset and liability method. Under this approach, deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized based on anticipated future tax consequences attributable to differences between financial statement carrying amounts of such items and their respective tax basis (See also Note (2) to consolidated financial statements).

Use of Derivative Instruments

The Company’s marketing segment is involved in the purchase and sale of crude oil. The Company seeks to make a profit by procuring this commodity as it is produced and then delivering the material to end users or the intermediate use marketplace. As is typical for the industry, such transactions are made pursuant to the terms of forward month commodity purchase and/or sale contracts. Some of these contracts meet the definition of a derivative instrument and therefore, the Company accounts for such contracts at fair value, unless the normal purchase and sale exception is applicable. Such underlying contracts are standard for the industry and are the governing document for the Company’s crude oil wholesale distribution businesses. None of the Company’s derivative instruments have been designated as hedging instruments. The accounting methodology utilized by the Company for its commodity contracts is further discussed below under the caption ‟Fair Value Measurements”.

The estimated fair value of forward month commodity contracts (derivatives) is reflected in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2015 as follows (in thousands):

	Balance Sheet Location and Amount
	Current		Other		Current		Other
	Assets		Assets		Liabilities		Liabilities
Asset Derivatives
- Fair Value Commodity
Contracts at Gross Valuation	$	-	$	-	$	-	$	-
Liability Derivatives
- Fair Value Commodity
Contracts at Gross Valuation		-		-		195		-
Less Counterparty Offsets		-		-		-		-
As Reported Fair Value Contracts	$	-	$	-	$	195	$	-

As of December 31, 2015, one contract comprised the Company’s derivative valuations. The purchase and sale contract encompass approximately 65 barrels of diesel fuel per day in each of January, February and March 2016.

The estimated fair value of forward month commodity contracts (derivatives) is reflected in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2014 as follows (in thousands):

	Balance Sheet Location and Amount
	Current			Other		Current			Other
	Assets			Assets		Liabilities			Liabilities
Asset Derivatives
- Fair Value Commodity
Contracts at Gross Valuation	$	1,332		$	-	$	-		$	-
Liability Derivatives
- Fair Value Commodity
Contracts at Gross Valuation		-			-		1,339			-
Less Counterparty Offsets		(396	)		-		(396	)		-
As Reported Fair Value Contracts	$	936		$	-	$	943		$	-

As of December 31, 2014, three commodity purchase and sale contracts comprised the Company’s derivative valuations. These contracts encompass approximately 294 barrels per day of crude oil for January and February 2015 plus 129 barrels per day of crude oil from March 2015 through December 2015.

The Company only enters into commodity contracts with creditworthy counterparties or obtains collateral support for such activities. As of December 31, 2015 and 2014, the Company was not holding nor had it posted any collateral to support its forward month fair value derivative activity. The Company is not subject to any credit-risk related trigger events. The Company has no other financial investment arrangements that would serve to offset its derivative contracts.

Forward month commodity contracts (derivatives) are reflected in the accompanying Consolidated Statement of Operations for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 as follows (in thousands):

	Gain (Loss)
Location	2015			2014		2013
Revenues – marketing	$	(188	)	$	312	$	(193	)

Fair Value Measurements

The carrying amount reported in the Consolidated Balance Sheet for cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable and accounts payable approximates fair value because of the immediate or short-term maturity of these financial instruments. Marketable securities are recorded at fair value based on market quotations from actively traded liquid markets.

Fair value contracts consist of derivative financial instruments and are recorded as either an asset or liability measured at fair value. Changes in fair value are recognized immediately in earnings unless the derivatives qualify for, and the Company elects, cash flow hedge accounting. The Company had no contracts designated for hedge accounting during any reporting periods.

Fair value estimates are based on assumptions that market participants would use when pricing an asset or liability and the Company uses a fair value hierarchy of three levels that prioritizes the information used to develop those assumptions. Currently, for all items presented herein, the Company utilizes a market approach to valuing its contracts. On a contract by contract, forward month by forward month basis, the Company obtains observable market data for valuing its contracts. The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices in active markets and the lowest priority to unobservable data. The fair value hierarchy is summarized as follows:

Level 1 – quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that may be accessed at the measurement date. Active markets are those in which transactions for the asset or liability occur in sufficient frequency and volume to provide pricing information on an ongoing basis. For Level 1 valuation of marketable securities, the Company utilizes market quotations provided by its primary financial institution and for the valuations of derivative financial instruments, the Company utilizes the New York Mercantile Exchange ‟NYMEX” for such valuations.

Level 2 – (a) quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets, (b) quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities but in markets that are not actively traded or in which little information is released to the public, (c) observable inputs other than quoted prices, and (d) inputs derived from observable market data. Source data for Level 2 inputs include information provided by the NYMEX, published price data and indices, third party price survey data and broker provided forward price statistics.

Level 3 – Unobservable market data inputs for assets or liabilities.

As of December 31, 2015, the Company’s fair value assets and liabilities are summarized and categorized as follows (in thousands):

	Market Data Inputs
	Gross Level 1		Gross Level 2			Gross Level 3		Counterparty
	Quoted Prices		Observable			Unobservable		Offsets		Total
Derivatives
- Current assets	$	-	$	-		$	-	$	-	$	-
- Current liabilities		-		(195	)		-		-		(195	)
Net Value	$	-	$	(195	)	$	-	$	-	$	(195	)

As of December 31, 2014, the Company’s fair value assets and liabilities are summarized and categorized as follows (in thousands):

	Market Data Inputs
	Gross Level 1		Gross Level 2			Gross Level 3		Counterparty
	Quoted Prices		Observable			Unobservable		Offsets			Total
Derivatives
- Current assets	$	-	$	1,332		$	-	$	(396	)	$	936
- Current liabilities		-		(1,339	)		-		396			(943	)
Net Value	$	-	$	(7	)	$	-	$	-		$	(7	)

When determining fair value measurements, the Company makes credit valuation adjustments to reflect both its own nonperformance risk and its counterparty’s nonperformance risk. When adjusting the fair value of derivative contracts for the effect of nonperformance risk, the impact of netting and applicable credit enhancements, such as collateral postings, thresholds, and guarantees are considered. Credit valuation adjustments utilize Level 3 inputs, such as credit scores to evaluate the likelihood of default by the Company or its counterparties. As of December 31, 2015 and 2014, credit valuation adjustments were not significant to the overall valuation of the Company’s fair value contracts. As a result, fair value assets and liabilities are included in their entirety in the fair value hierarchy.

The following table illustrates the factors impacting the change in the net value of the Company’s fair value contracts for the year ended December 31, 2015 (in thousands):

	Level 1		Level 2
	Quoted Prices		Observable			Total
Net Fair Value January 1	$	-	$	(7	)	$	(7	)
- Net realized (gains) losses		-		7			7
- Net unrealized gains (losses)		-		(195	)		(195	)
Net Fair Value December 31	$	-	$	(195	)	$	(195	)

The following table illustrates the factors impacting the change in the net value of the Company’s fair value contracts for the year ended December 31, 2014 (in thousands):

	Level 1		Level 2
	Quoted Prices		Observable			Total
Net Fair Value January 1	$	-	$	395		$	395
- Net realized (gains) losses		-		220			220
- Option deposit		-		(714	)		(714	)
- Option gain		-		99			99
- Net unrealized gains (losses)		-		(7	)		(7	)
Net Fair Value December 31	$	-	$	(7	)	$	(7	)

Asset Retirement Obligations

The Company records a liability for the estimated retirement costs associated with certain tangible long-lived assets. The estimated fair value of asset retirement obligations are recorded in the period in which they are incurred and the corresponding cost capitalized by increasing the carrying amount of the related long-lived asset. The liability is accreted to its then present value each period, and the capitalized cost is depreciated over the useful life of the asset or the units of production associated with the related asset. If the liability is settled for an amount other than the recorded amount, a gain or loss is recognized. A summary of the Company’s asset retirement obligations is presented as follows (in thousands):

	2015			2014
Balance on January 1	$	2,464		$	2,564
-Liabilities incurred		39			111
-Accretion of discount		93			94
-Liabilities settled		(127	)		(305	)
Balance on December 31	$	2,469		$	2,464

In addition to an accrual for asset retirement obligations, the Company maintains $75,000 in escrow cash, which is legally restricted for the potential purpose of settling asset retirement costs in accordance with certain state regulations. Such cash deposits are included in other assets in the accompanying consolidated balance sheet.

Recent Accounts Pronouncement

In May 2014, the FASB amended the existing accounting standards for revenue recognition. The amendments are based on the principle that revenue should be recognized to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. The new guidance is effective for the annual period ending after December 15, 2017. Early adoption is not permitted. The amendments may be applied retrospectively to each prior period presented or retrospectively with the cumulative effect recognized as of the date of initial application. Management is currently evaluating the impact of these amendments on the Company’s consolidated financial statements and the transition alternatives.

In August 2014, the FASB issued guidance requiring management to perform interim and annual assessments of an entity’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year of the date the financial statements are issued. The standard also provides guidance on determining when and how to disclose going-concern uncertainties in the financial statements. The new guidance is effective for the annual period ending after December 15, 2016, and interim periods thereafter, with early adoption permitted. Management does not expect the adoption of this guidance to have an impact on the Consolidated Financial Statements.

In July 2015, the FASB amended the existing accounting standards for inventory to provide for the measurement of inventory at the lower of cost of ‟net realizable value,” as defined in the standard. The new guidance is effective for the annual period ending after December 15, 2016, and interim periods thereafter, with early adoption permitted. Management does not expect the adoption of this guidance to have an impact on the consolidated financial statements.

In November 2015, the FASB issued guidance to simplify the presentation of deferred taxes in the statement of financial position. The amendment requires that deferred tax assets and liabilities be classified as non-current in the balance sheet. The Company adjusted this guidance on a prospective basis effective January 1, 2015.

Management believes the impact of other recently issued standards and updates, which are not yet effective, will not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows upon adoption.