Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Cut to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group dropped their price target on Diamondback Energy from $247.00 to $223.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company restated a “sector outperform” rating on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Johnson Rice cut Diamondback Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Diamondback Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $182.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Diamondback Energy from $185.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $209.64.

Diamondback Energy Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Diamondback Energy stock opened at $181.88 on Tuesday. Diamondback Energy has a 12-month low of $145.70 and a 12-month high of $214.50. The stock has a market cap of $53.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.89. The company has a quick ratio of 3.64, a current ratio of 3.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The business’s 50 day moving average is $181.77 and its 200-day moving average is $192.33.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The oil and natural gas company reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.62 by ($1.24). Diamondback Energy had a return on equity of 17.64% and a net margin of 33.64%. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.49 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Diamondback Energy will post 17.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. Diamondback Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Diamondback Energy

In other Diamondback Energy news, major shareholder Lyndal Greth sold 13,212,830 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.11, for a total value of $2,313,698,661.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,037,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $181,732,485.09. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FANG. First Community Trust NA bought a new stake in Diamondback Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC increased its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 67.1% in the second 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 bought a new stake in Diamondback Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Diamondback Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management grew its stake in Diamondback Energy by 99.2% in the second quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 251 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. 90.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Diamondback Energy

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.