Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Given New $167.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) had its price objective dropped by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $212.00 to $167.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the oil and natural gas company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 15.98% from the company’s current price.

FANG has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $220.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup downgraded Diamondback Energy from a “buy” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James dropped their target price on Diamondback Energy from $245.00 to $214.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com raised Diamondback Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Diamondback Energy from $219.00 to $215.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $211.92.

Diamondback Energy Stock Down 1.7 %

FANG stock traded down $2.56 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $144.00. 1,091,943 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,438,422. Diamondback Energy has a 1-year low of $137.09 and a 1-year high of $214.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.45. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $162.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $172.36. The company has a market cap of $41.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.84.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The oil and natural gas company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.55 billion. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 33.64% and a return on equity of 13.68%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Diamondback Energy will post 15.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Frank D. Tsuru acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $156.51 per share, for a total transaction of $313,020.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $896,802.30. This represents a 53.62 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lakewood Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 11,340 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $1,858,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. West Family Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 1,852 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $319,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,247 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $532,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Barden Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Barden Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,380 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $718,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 2,795 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $482,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 90.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Diamondback Energy

Diamondback Energy, Inc, an independent oil and natural gas company, acquires, develops, explores, and exploits unconventional, onshore oil and natural gas reserves in the Permian Basin in West Texas. It focuses on the development of the Spraberry and Wolfcamp formations of the Midland basin; and the Wolfcamp and Bone Spring formations of the Delaware basin, which are part of the Permian Basin in West Texas and New Mexico.