Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Raised to Outperform at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Wolfe Research currently has $190.00 target price on the oil and natural gas company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on FANG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Diamondback Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $182.00 price objective for the company. Johnson Rice downgraded Diamondback Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $235.00 to $212.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $232.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Diamondback Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $216.00 to $210.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Diamondback Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.83.

Diamondback Energy Stock Performance

Diamondback Energy stock opened at $170.96 on Friday. Diamondback Energy has a 52 week low of $147.93 and a 52 week high of $214.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market cap of $49.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $171.25 and a 200-day moving average of $184.63.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The oil and natural gas company reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.62 by ($1.24). The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.43 billion. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 33.64% and a return on equity of 13.68%. The company’s revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.49 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Diamondback Energy will post 16.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Diamondback Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.61%.

Insider Activity at Diamondback Energy

In related news, Director Mark Lawrence Plaumann sold 1,150 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.00, for a total transaction of $208,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $852,872. This represents a 19.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC increased its stake in Diamondback Energy by 67.1% in the 2nd quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 137 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. CVA Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 28.1% during the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 296 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group lifted its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 109.7% in the 2nd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 260 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.01% of the company’s stock.

Diamondback Energy Company Profile

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.