Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Sets New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday after Truist Financial upgraded the stock to a strong-buy rating. The company traded as high as $199.56 and last traded at $199.3760, with a volume of 535335 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $191.78.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on FANG. UBS Group raised their price target on Diamondback Energy from $194.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Diamondback Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. Freedom Capital raised shares of Diamondback Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $194.48.

Insider Activity at Diamondback Energy

In other news, Director Steven E. West sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.35, for a total value of $1,130,100.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,484 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $844,561.40. This represents a 57.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Fang Holdings Lp Sgf sold 1,000,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.88, for a total value of $162,880,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 98,686,727 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,074,094,093.76. The trade was a 1.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 1,209,212 shares of company stock worth $199,689,401 over the last quarter. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

More Diamondback Energy News

Here are the key news stories impacting Diamondback Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and new coverage — Truist initiated coverage and set a $222 price target (buy/strong‑buy), which signals institutional conviction and provides near‑term upside catalysts for investors. Truist Coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Post‑earnings rally / momentum — Publications note FANG is up ~14.2% since the company’s last earnings report, and analysts are re‑pricing estimates and sentiment accordingly; that momentum helps attract buyers and technical momentum traders. Diamondback Up 14.2% Since Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Relative strength in an otherwise weak market — Coverage explains why the broader market dipped while FANG gained, indicating stock‑specific drivers (analyst action, sector flows) rather than broad risk appetite. Why the Market Dipped But FANG Gained
• Neutral Sentiment: Energy‑sector tailwinds and thematic coverage — Roundups naming top energy picks (Goldman Sachs / other outlets) keep the sector in focus; this can be supportive but only material if Diamondback is specifically highlighted by those institutions. Goldman Sachs Energy Picks
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reporting appears anomalous — multiple reports show a “large increase” but list zero shares / NaN changes and 0.0 days to cover; this looks like a data/reporting error and is unlikely to be a genuine new short pressure signal until corrected.
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings miss and softer revenue trend — Diamondback’s recent quarter missed EPS and was slightly below revenue consensus, with revenue down year‑over‑year; that weak fundamental print is the key downside risk that could cap multiple expansion despite analyst upgrades.

Institutional Trading of Diamondback Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 31.7% in the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 274 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 0.3% during the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 19,719 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $2,822,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. increased its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 0.7% during the third quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 10,030 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $1,435,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 3.0% during the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $367,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsend & Associates Inc raised its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Townsend & Associates Inc now owns 14,330 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $2,161,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. 90.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Diamondback Energy Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $55.14 billion, a PE ratio of 34.94 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business’s fifty day moving average is $171.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.99.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The oil and natural gas company reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.26). The business had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.41 billion. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 11.07% and a return on equity of 8.08%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 5th were given a dividend of $1.05 per share. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Diamondback Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 5th. Diamondback Energy’s payout ratio is 74.87%.

About Diamondback Energy

Diamondback Energy, Inc (NASDAQ: FANG) is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on the development, exploration and production of unconventional resources in the Permian Basin. Headquartered in Midland, Texas, the company concentrates its operations in the core Midland and Delaware sub‑basins of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, where it pursues contiguous acreage positions to support repeatable drilling programs.

Diamondback’s activities span the upstream value chain, including leasehold acquisition, well planning, drilling, completion and production optimization.