Benchmark Increases Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Price Target to $195.00

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) had its price target boosted by research analysts at Benchmark from $154.00 to $195.00 in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the oil and natural gas company’s stock. Benchmark’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 4.08% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on Diamondback Energy from $243.00 to $236.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $220.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $185.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $247.00 to $223.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $207.68.

Diamondback Energy Stock Performance

Shares of FANG traded up $6.06 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $187.35. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,443,554 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,656,416. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $187.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $195.25. Diamondback Energy has a 52-week low of $143.08 and a 52-week high of $214.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 3.66 and a quick ratio of 3.64. The company has a market cap of $33.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.52, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.89.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The oil and natural gas company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.51 by $0.01. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 37.51% and a return on equity of 19.54%. The business had revenue of $2.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.68 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Diamondback Energy will post 18.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Diamondback Energy

In related news, major shareholder Lyndal Greth sold 13,212,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.11, for a total transaction of $2,313,698,661.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,037,819 shares in the company, valued at $181,732,485.09. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Founders Capital Management grew its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 404.0% in the 1st quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 126 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. First Community Trust NA purchased a new stake in Diamondback Energy in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC grew 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 during the period. Logan Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $40,000. 90.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.