Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Coverage Initiated at The Goldman Sachs Group

Research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) in a research report issued on Monday. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $227.00 price target on the oil and natural gas company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target indicates a potential upside of 27.82% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on FANG. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research report on Monday, September 16th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Diamondback Energy from $237.00 to $233.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley raised 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. Finally, StockNews.com raised Diamondback Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $212.65.

Diamondback Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ FANG traded up $1.40 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $177.59. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 820,286 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,759,684. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $181.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $189.82. Diamondback Energy has a 52 week low of $145.70 and a 52 week high of $214.50. The stock has a market cap of $51.85 billion, a PE ratio of 10.17, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.89.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The oil and natural gas company reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.62 by ($1.24). The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.43 billion. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 33.64% and a return on equity of 13.68%. Diamondback Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.49 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Diamondback Energy will post 16.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Lyndal Greth sold 13,212,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.11, for a total value of $2,313,698,661.30. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,037,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $181,732,485.09. This represents a 92.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mark Lawrence Plaumann sold 1,150 shares of Diamondback Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.00, for a total transaction of $208,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $852,872. This trade represents a 19.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Community Trust NA bought a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC raised 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. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Diamondback Energy in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Diamondback Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 99.2% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 251 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.01% of the company’s stock.

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.