LPL Financial LLC Sells 6,940 Shares of Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC has reduced its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 3.8%, owning 174,702 shares worth approximately $27.93 million after selling 6,940 shares in the first quarter.
• Diamondback Energy reported $4.54 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $3.67, with a revenue of $4.05 billion, marking an 81.8% increase year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.00, resulting in an annualized dividend of $4.00, with a yield of 2.7% and a payout ratio of 24.46%.

LPL Financial LLC trimmed its holdings in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Free Report) by 3.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 174,702 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after selling 6,940 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.06% of Diamondback Energy worth $27,931,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in Diamondback Energy during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its stake in Diamondback Energy by 95.7% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 180 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in Diamondback Energy by 65.0% during the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. WASHINGTON TRUST Co increased its stake in Diamondback Energy by 119.8% during the 1st quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 200 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in Diamondback Energy during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Diamondback Energy Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:FANG traded down $2.10 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $145.68. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,844,482 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,905,592. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $143.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $146.47. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $114.00 and a fifty-two week high of $202.87.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The oil and natural gas company reported $2.67 EPS 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 9.64%. The firm had revenue of $3.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.52 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 48.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Diamondback Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Diamondback Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Mizuho decreased their price target 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. Bank of America lifted their price target on Diamondback Energy from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target on Diamondback Energy from $192.00 to $188.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two 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.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $191.59.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Diamondback Energy news, President Hof Matthew Kaes Van't sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.69, for a total transaction of $1,426,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 120,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,214,835.05. The trade was a 7.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

About Diamondback Energy

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.