Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Boosts Stake in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 168,384 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Diamondback Energy worth $27,586,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FANG. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 247.3% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 191 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the third quarter valued at about $42,000. CVA Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 28.1% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 296 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 109.7% during the 2nd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 260 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on FANG shares. BMO Capital Markets raised Diamondback Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $205.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $235.00 to $212.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $237.00 to $233.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $191.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $210.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.00.

Diamondback Energy Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FANG opened at $173.26 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $50.59 billion, a PE ratio of 9.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.88. The company’s 50 day moving average is $170.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $182.47. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $147.93 and a 52 week high of $214.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last posted its 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 business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.43 billion. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 33.64% and a return on equity of 13.68%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.49 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. Diamondback Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Diamondback Energy

In other Diamondback Energy news, Director Mark Lawrence Plaumann sold 1,150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.00, for a total transaction of $208,150.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $852,872. This trade represents a 19.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Diamondback Energy 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.