Larson Financial Group LLC Raises Position in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG)

Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) by 9.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,716 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,517 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Diamondback Energy were worth $2,902,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 247.3% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 191 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Key Financial Inc raised its stake in Diamondback Energy by 940.0% in the 4th quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 208 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co raised its stake in Diamondback Energy by 37.8% in the 4th quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 310 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Diamondback Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $52,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.01% of the company’s stock.

Diamondback Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ:FANG opened at $140.11 on Friday. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $138.94 and a 52 week high of $214.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.55 billion, a PE ratio of 8.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.85. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $163.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $173.39.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The oil and natural gas company reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.07. Diamondback Energy had a return on equity of 13.68% and a net margin of 33.64%. The firm had revenue of $3.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.55 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. This is a boost from Diamondback Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. Diamondback Energy’s payout ratio is presently 25.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Frank D. Tsuru acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $156.51 per share, for a total transaction of $313,020.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 5,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $896,802.30. This represents a 53.62 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on FANG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Diamondback Energy from $218.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Diamondback Energy from $220.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Mizuho raised their target price on Diamondback Energy from $201.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Diamondback Energy in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $227.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Diamondback Energy from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.09.

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.