<PAGE>
 
                     STOCKHOLDER RETURN PERFORMANCE GRAPH



          The following graph compares the yearly percentage change in the
Company's cumulative total return on its Common Stock over the preceding five-
year period with the cumulative total return of the Standard & Poor's 500 Stock
Index ("S&P 500 Index") and with two peer groups of publicly traded companies
over the same period.  The first peer group (the "1993 Peer Group") is the peer
group used by the Company in the presentation of the performance graph included
in the proxy soliciting material for its 1993 and 1994 annual meetings and
consists of the following companies:  Edisto Resources Corporation, Energy
Service Company, Inc., Global Marine Inc., Marine Drilling Companies, Inc.,
Mesa, Inc., Reading & Bates Corporation, and Western Company of North America.
The second peer group (the "1994 Peer Group") is a new group of peer issuers
selected by the Company in order to provide a better comparison to companies in
the natural gas services sector of the energy industry, in which the Company's
current operations are concentrated.  (The 1993 Peer Group includes several
companies in the offshore drilling industry in which the Company no longer
operates.)  The 1994 Peer Group consists of Tidewater, Inc., Enterra Corp.,
Production Operators Corp., Western Gas Resources, Inc., Aquila Gas Pipeline
Corporation, Tejas Gas Corporation, KN Energy, Inc., and USX-Delhi Group.  In
accordance with Commission rules, the 1993 Peer Group is presented along with
the 1994 Peer Group in the year of transition.

                             [GRAPH APPEARS HERE]

               COMPARISON OF FIVE YEAR CUMULATIVE TOTAL RETURN*
                AMONG ZAPATA CORPORATION, THE S & P 500 INDEX,
                  THE 1994 PEER GROUP AND THE 1993 PEER GROUP

<TABLE> 
<CAPTION> 
Measurement Period      ZAPATA          1994           1993
(Fiscal Year Covered)   CORPORATION     PEER GROUP     PEER GROUP    S & P 500
- --------------------    -----------     ----------     ----------    ---------
<S>                     <C>             <C>            <C>           <C> 
Measurement Pt-
09/30/89
FYE 09/30/89            $100            $100           $100          $100
FYE 09/30/90            $ 48            $146           $128          $ 91
FYE 09/30/91            $ 31            $143           $ 59          $119
FYE 09/30/92            $ 38            $188           $ 41          $132
FYE 09/30/93            $ 38            $269           $ 61          $149
FYE 09/30/94            $ 35            $212           $ 52          $155  
</TABLE>

 
* $100 INVESTED ON 09/30/89 IN STOCK OR INDEX-
  INCLUDING REINVESTMENT OF DIVIDENDS.
  FISCAL YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 30.

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