Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Buy Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Sunday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Mizuho lifted their price target on Diamondback Energy from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $232.00 to $221.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $206.00 target price on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Roth Capital set a $212.00 target price on Diamondback Energy and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $262.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.05.

Diamondback Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FANG opened at $204.97 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $197.79 and a 200-day moving average of $192.88. Diamondback Energy has a 12 month low of $134.30 and a 12 month high of $216.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.40 billion, a PE ratio of 39.96 and a beta of 0.43.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The oil and natural gas company reported $6.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.08 by $0.40. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 8.58% and a return on equity of 10.10%. The business had revenue of $5.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 51.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Diamondback Energy will post 19.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 13th were given a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Diamondback Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.77%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Charles Meloy sold 83,334 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.12, for a total value of $15,593,458.08. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 851,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $159,338,293.60. The trade was a 8.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.64% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FANG. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC lifted its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 264.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 186 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Diamondback Energy during the second quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new position in Diamondback Energy during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Diamondback Energy Company Profile

Diamondback Energy, Inc is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on the acquisition, development, exploration and exploitation of unconventional, onshore oil and natural gas reserves in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The company’s operations are concentrated primarily in the Midland and Delaware sub-basins.

Diamondback produces crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its activities include drilling and completing horizontal wells, operating gathering and infrastructure assets, and managing mineral and royalty interests through its Viper Energy platform.