Bob Simpson to step down as CEO of Fort Worth’s TXO, remain as chairman
March 20,2025
See full Fort Worth Report article by Bob Francis here.
Energy legend Bob R. Simpson will retire from his current position as CEO of Fort Worth-based TXO Partners LP, though he will remain chairman of the board for the company.
He will hand the CEO duties over to two longtime company leaders, Brent W. Clum and Gary D. Simpson, his nephew, who begin as co-CEOs on April 1.
Gary D. Simpson, currently president of production and development will continue in that role and also join the board of directors. Clum, who currently serves as president of business operations, chief financial officer and director of the general partner, will also continue in those roles.
“I am proud of our success at TXO Partners, and my intent is to continue providing leadership from this key position on the board,” said Bob Simpson in a news release. “With his promotion, Gary brings decades of experience and a comprehensive skill set to the CEO office. Furthermore, Brent’s wisdom, dedication and in-depth perspective fortify the executive position.”
Simpson started TXO, then named MorningStar, after the sale of his previous company, XTO Energy, to ExxonMobil for $41 billion in 2009. The company has maintained a low profile even though it has a high-profile address: 400 W. 7th St., the former Fort Worth Star-Telegram building, next to The Fort Worth Club.
The company went public in January 2023, trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the TXO symbol. The stock was trading at $19.70 at noon March 20.
Bob Simpson’s previous company was one of the great Fort Worth energy success stories. It began in 1986 as Cross Timbers Oil Company with Simpson, Jon Brumley and Steve Palko. After the name was changed to XTO Energy, the company became a leader in the growth of shale energy and unconventional resource development. It grew to have 4,100 employees and became the largest producer of natural gas in America.
Along the way, XTO — under the guiding hand of Bob Simpson — was known not only for producing good returns on its oil and gas acquisition and production, but also for purchasing historic buildings in Fort Worth and refurbishing them to use as the company’s offices. In 2007, Simpson was honored as a Restore America Hero award winner by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and HGTV.
Simpson began restoring buildings in the mid-1990s with the W.T. Waggoner building at 810 Houston St., where XTO was based. After XTO was acquired by Exxon in 2009, the subsidiary’s headquarters was moved to Houston in 2014. The company sold several downtown Fort Worth buildings it owned during the process of moving.
Simpson, who left XTO following the sale, acquired the former Fort Worth Star-Telegram building at 400 W. 7th St. and refurbished it for his new company’s headquarters.
Simpson is also a co-owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team, along with another Texas oil business leader, Ray Davis.
“No doubt, Bob is a legend within the energy industry,” said Gary D. Simpson in a statement. “Over a remarkable career of fifty years, his entrepreneurial spirit, financial stewardship and dogged endurance have forged his all-around success. We have been blessed to learn from him along the way.”
Gary D. Simpson has served as senior vice president of TXO since January 2023 and served as a consultant since its founding in 2012. Prior to that, he served as senior vice president of investor relations and finance and board member at XTO Energy Inc., prior to its acquisition by ExxonMobil Corp.
“Bob is not only a visionary, he is a great leader, a generous mentor and a trusted friend,” said Clum. “I am proud of what we have built through our partnership and stewardship and am determined to extend this legacy, with Gary, of building a powerful business where our investors and our employees are rewarded.”
Clum has served as chief financial officer since the founding of MorningStar in 2012. He has served as chairman of the finance and audit committee of Rangers Baseball Express. He served as senior vice president and treasurer of XTO until the Exxon acquisition. Prior to joining XTO, Clum worked as a portfolio manager at Luther King Capital Management.
TXO’s current acreage positions are concentrated in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico, the San Juan Basin of New Mexico and Colorado and the Williston Basin of Montana and North Dakota.
Bob Francis is business editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.