Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) has received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the twenty-six research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seventeen have given a buy recommendation and five have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $218.25.

FANG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Diamondback Energy from $215.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $173.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Monday, January 19th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $202.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Diamondback Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th.

Insider Activity at Diamondback Energy

In other news, Director Charles Alvin Meloy sold 7,857 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.20, for a total value of $1,486,544.40. Following the sale, the director directly owned 942,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $178,362,813.20. This trade represents a 0.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Jere W. Thompson III sold 750 shares of Diamondback Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.47, for a total value of $136,852.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 19,975 shares in the company, valued at $3,644,838.25. The trade was a 3.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 169,321 shares of company stock valued at $31,055,475. 0.64% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Diamondback Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 245.1% during the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 176 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Diamondback Energy Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:FANG opened at $203.56 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.26 billion, a PE ratio of 236.70 and a beta of 0.46. Diamondback Energy has a 1 year low of $132.20 and a 1 year high of $214.51. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $191.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.76.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The oil and natural gas company reported $4.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.74 by $0.49. Diamondback Energy had a return on equity of 7.76% and a net margin of 1.87%.The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.83 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.54 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Diamondback Energy will post 19.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. This is a positive change from Diamondback Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Diamondback Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 511.63%.

Diamondback Energy Company Profile

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.