Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) Shares Acquired by Arete Wealth Advisors LLC

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) by 924.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,773 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,038 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Diamondback Energy were worth $2,911,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of FANG. Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,066,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in Diamondback Energy by 368.1% during the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 9,784 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $1,687,000 after purchasing an additional 7,694 shares during the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 3.1% during the third quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 100,726 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $17,365,000 after purchasing an additional 3,054 shares during the period. Hilltop Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $224,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 162.6% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 52,974 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $9,130,000 after buying an additional 32,803 shares during the period. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Diamondback Energy Price Performance

Shares of Diamondback Energy stock opened at $161.49 on Thursday. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $137.09 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. The stock has a market cap of $46.74 billion, a PE ratio of 9.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.85. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $157.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.51.

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

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. This is an increase from Diamondback Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Diamondback Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 25.32%.

Insider Transactions at Diamondback Energy

In related news, Director Frank D. Tsuru bought 2,000 shares of Diamondback Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $156.51 per share, with a total value of $313,020.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $896,802.30. This trade represents a 53.62 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $195.00 to $157.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $210.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $236.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Diamondback Energy from $252.00 to $232.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Diamondback Energy from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $209.33.

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.