Gulfport Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: GPOR) appointed Donnie Moore as its COO, the Oklahoma City-based company said Jan. 2.

Moore joins Gulfport, effective Jan. 8, from Houston-based Noble Energy Inc. (NYSE: NBL). He most recently served as vice president of Noble’s Texas operations in the Eagle Ford and Delaware Basin assets.

Previously, Moore held various leadership roles including vice president of the Marcellus business unit, manager of operations for the Wattenberg/Denver-Julesburg Basin business unit, manager of operations for the Gunflint discovery in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, and development manager for Noble’s Midcontinent and Gulf Coast positions.

Prior to joining Noble in 2007, Moore held a variety of roles with ARCO Oil and Gas Co., Vastar Resources and BP America and brings to Gulfport more than 28 years of operations and subsurface leadership experience, according to the company release. He is a graduate of Louisiana Tech University with a Bachelor of Science degree in petroleum engineering.

At Gulfport, Moore will receive an annual salary of $430,125 and a sign-on bonus of $250,000, according to a Reuters report citing regulatory filings. Moore's compensation package at Noble was not publicly disclosed as he was not one of the company's five highest-paid employees. However, his new compensation plan eclipses that of some of his former Noble peers, according to filings.

Additionally, Moore will be eligible for stock awards of $1.2 million that will vest over three years and stock grants worth 350% of his salary, Reuters said. He will also be eligible for an annual cash bonus of 80% of his salary. Gulfport will pay up to $90,000 for Moore's moving expenses as well.

Michael G. Moore, Gulfport’s CEO and president, said in a statement, “Donnie has demonstrated exceptional management and technical leadership throughout his career and I believe his proven track record will play a vital role in Gulfport’s future success. He holds significant experience across all facets of the business, in his most recent positions managing multibillion-dollar capital programs and also leading the development of the asset across multi-disciplinary teams within the organization, resulting in production growth of over five times in a two and half year period. We are pleased to be adding another key member to our team and look forward to working with him as we continue to seek the greatest value from our portfolio of assets and maximize shareholder return.”

Gulfport holds significant acreage positions in the Utica Shale of Eastern Ohio and the Scoop Woodford and Scoop Springer plays in Oklahoma. The company’s board of directors conducted a nationwide search for the COO position with Russell Reynolds Associates, the release said.

Shares of Noble rose 4% to $31.39 and shares of Gulfport rose 2% to $13.53 in early afternoon trading on Jan. 3 as crude prices rallied, Reuters said.

Reuters contributed to this article.