Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Upgraded at BMO Capital Markets

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) was upgraded by equities research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report issued on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a $215.00 price target on the oil and natural gas company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $205.00. BMO Capital Markets’ price target suggests a potential upside of 10.48% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $230.00 to $219.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Diamondback Energy from $185.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $245.00 to $237.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Diamondback Energy in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $182.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.50.

Diamondback Energy Trading Up 3.4 %

FANG stock opened at $194.61 on Friday. Diamondback Energy has a one year low of $143.08 and a one year high of $214.50. The company has a market capitalization of $34.71 billion, a PE ratio of 10.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.89. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $187.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $195.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 3.64 and a current ratio of 3.66.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 19.54% and a net margin of 37.51%. The firm had revenue of $2.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Diamondback Energy will post 18.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 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 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 owns 1,037,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $181,732,485.09. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Founders Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 404.0% during the first quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 126 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. First Community Trust NA bought a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Logan Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Diamondback Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Diamondback Energy in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. 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.