Eventide Asset Management LLC Trims Holdings in Diamondback Energy, Inc. $FANG

Key Points

• Eventide Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Diamondback Energy, Inc. by 21.9%, now holding 6,332 shares valued at approximately $998,000.
• Insider trading saw Chairman Travis D. Stice sell 20,400 shares for over $2.9 million, decreasing his ownership by 16.65% with a remaining 102,145 shares.
• Multiple analysts have revised their price targets, with Bank of America raising theirs to $170.00 and maintaining a "buy" rating on the stock.

Eventide Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Free Report) by 21.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,332 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after selling 1,776 shares during the period. Eventide Asset Management LLC's holdings in Diamondback Energy were worth $998,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Investor s Fiduciary Advisor Network LLC boosted its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 2.1% in the first quarter. Investor s Fiduciary Advisor Network LLC now owns 3,559 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $569,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 5.6% during the first quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,414 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 2.9% during the first quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,779 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in Diamondback Energy by 65.0% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Biondo Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Diamondback Energy by 0.3% during the first quarter. Biondo Investment Advisors LLC now owns 28,858 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $4,614,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.01% of the company's stock.

Diamondback Energy Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of FANG stock traded down $4.03 on Friday, hitting $138.71. The stock had a trading volume of 1,993,976 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,701,825. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $142.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.77. The company has a market cap of $40.16 billion, a PE ratio of 9.86 and a beta of 1.15. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $114.00 and a one year high of $200.47.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The oil and natural gas company reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.72 by ($0.05). Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 27.25% and a return on equity of 9.48%. The company had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.52 EPS. Diamondback Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 48.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Diamondback Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $180.00 to $176.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Diamondback Energy from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Diamondback Energy from $186.00 to $179.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Diamondback Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $193.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Diamondback Energy news, Chairman Travis D. Stice sold 20,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.80, for a total value of $2,913,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 102,145 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,586,306. This trade represents a 16.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Diamondback Energy 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.