Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Price Target Cut to $236.00

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) had its price objective decreased by Sanford C. Bernstein from $243.00 to $236.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. Sanford C. Bernstein currently has an outperform rating on the oil and natural gas company’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $224.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $186.00 to $184.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Diamondback Energy from $227.00 to $224.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Benchmark restated a buy rating and issued a $154.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Finally, KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Thursday, June 27th. They set an overweight rating and a $225.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $208.95.

Diamondback Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FANG opened at $205.47 on Wednesday. Diamondback Energy has a one year low of $139.45 and a one year high of $214.50. The stock has a market cap of $36.64 billion, a PE ratio of 11.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.90. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $197.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and natural gas company reported $4.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. Diamondback Energy had a return on equity of 19.36% and a net margin of 36.71%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.10 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Diamondback Energy will post 18.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 14th. Diamondback Energy’s payout ratio is 20.29%.

Insider Activity at Diamondback Energy

In other Diamondback Energy news, VP Jere W. Thompson III sold 900 shares of Diamondback Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.90, for a total transaction of $179,910.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,516,241.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, COO Daniel N. Wesson sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.14, for a total transaction of $1,182,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 69,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,736,123.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Jere W. Thompson III sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.90, for a total value of $179,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,516,241.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FANG. Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in Diamondback Energy by 7.2% during the second quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 809 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $162,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,975 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $3,999,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 16.1% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 412 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 3,667 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $734,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC raised its stake in Diamondback Energy by 4.5% during the first quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 1,420 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.