Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Downgraded to “Moderate Buy” at Johnson Rice

Johnson Rice lowered shares of Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) from a strong-buy rating to a moderate buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday, Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. UBS Group dropped 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. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Diamondback Energy from $231.00 to $230.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $185.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $243.00 to $236.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $209.71.

Diamondback Energy Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FANG opened at $180.53 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $191.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $195.81. The company has a current ratio of 3.66, a quick ratio of 3.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Diamondback Energy has a 12-month low of $143.08 and a 12-month high of $214.50.

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

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a None dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a $2.34 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from Diamondback Energy’s previous None dividend of $2.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. Diamondback Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 20.29%.

Insider Activity at Diamondback Energy

In other Diamondback Energy news, major shareholder Lyndal Greth sold 13,212,830 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the insider now owns 1,037,819 shares in the company, valued at $181,732,485.09. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.48% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FANG. Founders Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 404.0% in the first quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 126 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. First Community Trust NA bought a new position in Diamondback Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC increased its stake in Diamondback Energy by 67.1% in the 2nd quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 137 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Diamondback Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Diamondback Energy during the second quarter valued at about $40,000. 90.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.