Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $190.70, but opened at $183.66. Diamondback Energy shares last traded at $181.99, with a volume of 566,791 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FANG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $245.00 to $237.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $182.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $185.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $243.00 to $236.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Diamondback Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $210.27.

Diamondback Energy Trading Down 4.5 %

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 $187.31 and its 200-day moving average is $195.21. The firm has a market cap of $32.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.89.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The oil and natural gas company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.51 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 37.51% and a return on equity of 19.54%. The business’s revenue was up 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.68 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 19.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Diamondback Energy

In other Diamondback Energy news, major shareholder Lyndal Greth sold 13,212,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.11, for a total transaction 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 trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 178.1% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 30,532 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $6,112,000 after acquiring an additional 19,552 shares during the last quarter. Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Diamondback Energy in the first quarter worth about $1,801,000. Cullen Investment Group LTD. lifted its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 33.5% in the third quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 11,978 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $2,065,000 after purchasing an additional 3,008 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 2,768.9% in the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 4,332 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $883,000 after purchasing an additional 4,181 shares during the period. Finally, Homestead Advisers Corp acquired a new stake in Diamondback Energy in the first quarter worth about $87,940,000. Institutional investors 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.