Diamondback Energy, Inc. $FANG Shares Sold by National Pension Service

Key Points

• National Pension Service reduced its Diamondback Energy stake by 1.7%, selling 5,250 shares and retaining 306,432 shares worth approximately $53.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own about 90% of the company.
• Director Charles Meloy sold 33,333 shares for approximately $6.6 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, reducing his ownership by 3.91%.
• Diamondback reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $6.48 and revenue of $5.56 billion, while maintaining a $1.10 quarterly dividend. Analysts give the stock a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $224.05.

National Pension Service trimmed its stake in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Free Report) by 1.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 306,432 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after selling 5,250 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.11% of Diamondback Energy worth $53,865,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 338,577 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $50,890,000 after purchasing an additional 47,450 shares during the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD grew its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 54,132 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $8,042,000 after purchasing an additional 5,816 shares during the period. Peterson Wealth Services raised its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 174.2% during the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 23,973 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $3,604,000 after buying an additional 15,229 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 67,977 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $10,219,000 after acquiring an additional 6,992 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC boosted its stake in Diamondback Energy by 33.1% during the 1st quarter. Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC now owns 113,489 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $22,447,000 after acquiring an additional 28,246 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Diamondback Energy

In other news, Director Charles Meloy sold 33,333 shares of Diamondback Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.41, for a total value of $6,613,600.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 818,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $162,338,466.77. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.64% of the company's stock.

Diamondback Energy Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Diamondback Energy stock opened at $204.97 on Friday. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $134.30 and a 12-month high of $216.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.40 billion, a PE ratio of 39.96 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock's fifty day moving average is $197.79 and its 200-day moving average is $192.74.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The oil and natural gas company reported $6.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.08 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $5.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.89 billion. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 8.58% and a return on equity of 10.10%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 51.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.38 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 19.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Diamondback Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th were given a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 13th. Diamondback Energy's payout ratio is currently 85.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on FANG. Roth Capital set a $212.00 target price on Diamondback Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research report on Sunday, August 9th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $216.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $246.00 to $243.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Diamondback Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $224.05.

Diamondback Energy Profile

Diamondback Energy, Inc is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on the acquisition, development, exploration and exploitation of unconventional, onshore oil and natural gas reserves in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The company's operations are concentrated primarily in the Midland and Delaware sub-basins.

Diamondback produces crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its activities include drilling and completing horizontal wells, operating gathering and infrastructure assets, and managing mineral and royalty interests through its Viper Energy platform.

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