Key Points
- EVP Matt Zmigrosky sold 20,899 shares at an average price of $180 on March 13, a $3.76 million transaction that cut his holdings by 25.68% to 60,493 shares.
- Diamondback missed quarterly estimates, reporting $1.74 EPS vs. $2.00 expected and revenue down 9% year‑over‑year, while analysts still project strong full‑year earnings growth.
- The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.05 (annualized $4.20, ~2.2% yield) amid bullish analyst moves, including Raymond James lifting its target to $240 and several other price‑target increases.
Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) CFO Jere Thompson III sold 750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.47, for a total value of $136,852.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 19,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,644,838.25. This represents a 3.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.
Diamondback Energy Trading Up 2.7%
Shares of FANG stock opened at $187.22 on Wednesday. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.00 and a 1 year high of $188.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.66 billion, a PE ratio of 33.37 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $165.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.42.
Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 23rd. The oil and natural gas company reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.26). The company had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.41 billion. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 11.07% and a return on equity of 8.08%. Diamondback Energy's revenue for the quarter was down 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 EPS for the current year.
Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 5th were given a dividend of $1.05 per share. This is a positive change from Diamondback Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 5th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Diamondback Energy's payout ratio is presently 74.87%.
Trending Headlines about Diamondback Energy
Here are the key news stories impacting Diamondback Energy this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Raymond James raised its price target to $240 and assigned a "strong‑buy" — a large upside signal that likely boosted investor demand. Raymond James PT Raise
- Positive Sentiment: Mizuho bumped its target to $220 and moved to "outperform," reinforcing bullish analyst momentum across the stock. Mizuho PT Raise
- Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its target to $202 with an "overweight" rating — another vote of confidence from a large bank. Wells Fargo PT Raise
- Positive Sentiment: Barclays lifted its target to $190 and kept an "overweight" stance, adding to the cluster of price‑target increases. Barclays PT Raise
- Positive Sentiment: Press and research pieces name Diamondback as a way to play higher oil prices (Barron's and Goldman Sachs roundup of energy picks), which supports sector‑driven buying. Barron's: Underappreciated Energy Stocks
- Neutral Sentiment: Coverage noting peers (ConocoPhillips, EOG) outperforming on liquidity and leverage may shift relative positioning among large‑cap energy names but is not directly negative for Diamondback. BofA Peer Liquidity Note
- Negative Sentiment: EVP Matt Zmigrosky sold 20,899 shares at ~$180 (25.7% reduction in his holding) — a large insider sale that may concern some investors. SEC Filing — Zmigrosky
- Negative Sentiment: VP Albert Barkmann sold 4,000 shares at ~$182.90 (12.7% reduction), another insider disposition disclosed to the SEC. SEC Filing — Barkmann
- Negative Sentiment: CFO Jere W. Thompson III sold 750 shares at ~$182.47 (3.6% reduction), a smaller but still notable insider sale. SEC Filing — Thompson
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research firms have recently issued reports on FANG. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $171.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Citigroup cut their target price on Diamondback Energy from $180.00 to $178.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen cut Diamondback Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $194.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $195.43.
View Our Latest Analysis on FANG
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diamondback Energy
Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 31.7% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 274 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 19,719 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $2,822,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co. boosted its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 10,030 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $1,435,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Diamondback Energy by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsend & Associates Inc raised its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Townsend & Associates Inc now owns 14,330 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $2,161,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. 90.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Diamondback Energy Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
Diamondback Energy, Inc (NASDAQ: FANG) is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on the development, exploration and production of unconventional resources in the Permian Basin. Headquartered in Midland, Texas, the company concentrates its operations in the core Midland and Delaware sub‑basins of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, where it pursues contiguous acreage positions to support repeatable drilling programs.
Diamondback's activities span the upstream value chain, including leasehold acquisition, well planning, drilling, completion and production optimization.
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