Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG – Get Rating) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation, twelve have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $180.58.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on FANG shares. Johnson Rice upgraded shares of Diamondback Energy from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 5th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $195.00 to $177.00 in a research report on Friday, March 10th. Credit Suisse Group raised their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 17th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $173.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 23rd.

Diamondback Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FANG opened at $122.74 on Thursday. Diamondback Energy has a fifty-two week low of $103.71 and a fifty-two week high of $168.95. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $142.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $141.52. The company has a market capitalization of $22.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 2.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 21st. The oil and natural gas company reported $5.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.20 by $0.09. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 45.48% and a return on equity of 29.29%. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Diamondback Energy will post 22.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 3rd were issued a $2.95 dividend. This represents a $11.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 2nd. Diamondback Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Diamondback Energy news, VP Matt Zmigrosky sold 2,012 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.96, for a total transaction of $275,563.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 23,623 shares in the company, valued at $3,235,406.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FANG. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Diamondback Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 83.5% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 189 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Adirondack Trust Co. increased its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 275.0% during the 3rd quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 225 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA purchased a new stake in Diamondback Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. boosted its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 72.1% during the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 241 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

About Diamondback Energy

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Diamondback Energy, Inc is an independent oil and natural gas company, which engages in the acquisition, development, exploration, and exploitation of unconventional, onshore oil, and natural gas reserves. It operates through the Upstream and Midstream Services segments. The Upstream segment focuses on the Permian Basin operations in West Texas.