470,823 Diversified Energy Company PLC $DEC Shares Bought by Artemis Investment Management LLP

Key Points

• Artemis Investment Management increased its Diversified Energy stake by 8.3%, buying 470,823 shares to bring its holdings to 6.15 million shares, or roughly 8.69% of the company.
• Diversified Energy shares rose 1.6% to $14.26, while the company reported quarterly EPS of negative $0.29, missing the $0.20 consensus estimate, and revenue of $442.3 million versus expectations of $493.0 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.29, representing an annualized payout of $1.16 and an 8.1% dividend yield. Analysts maintained a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $22.50.

Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its position in shares of Diversified Energy Company PLC (NYSE:DEC - Free Report) by 8.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,148,058 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 470,823 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP owned approximately 8.69% of Diversified Energy worth $82,383,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Diversified Energy in the second quarter worth $988,000. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Diversified Energy by 6.9% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 19,483 shares of the company's stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 1,261 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Diversified Energy during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Diversified Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $259,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Diversified Energy by 197.0% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 4,909 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 3,256 shares during the last quarter. 26.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Diversified Energy Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE DEC traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $14.26. 290,320 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 931,556. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.57. Diversified Energy Company PLC has a 12-month low of $12.33 and a 12-month high of $18.90. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $14.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.68. The firm has a market cap of $1.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.41 and a beta of -0.28.

Diversified Energy (NYSE:DEC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.49). The firm had revenue of $442.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $492.98 million. As a group, analysts expect that Diversified Energy Company PLC will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Diversified Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.1%. Diversified Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Diversified Energy from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Mizuho set a $32.00 price objective on Diversified Energy in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Diversified Energy from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Diversified Energy from $19.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Zacks Research cut Diversified Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.50.

About Diversified Energy

Diversified Energy Company plc is an independent energy company that owns and operates a portfolio of mature, producing oil and natural gas wells in the United States. The company focuses on acquiring long-life conventional assets and managing them through their full operating lifecycle, with activities spanning production, maintenance, infrastructure management and well retirement.

The company's operations are concentrated in established U.S. onshore producing regions, including the Appalachian, Central and Rockies areas.

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