Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Sells 10,498 Shares of Diamondback Energy, Inc. $FANG

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd cut its Diamondback Energy stake by 48.9% in the first quarter, selling 10,498 shares and ending with 10,962 shares valued at about $2.18 million.
• Insider selling continued, with Director Charles Alvin Meloy and EVP Matt Zmigrosky both reducing their holdings; insiders have sold 113,691 shares worth roughly $21.6 million over the last 90 days.
• Diamondback Energy beat Q1 earnings expectations, reporting EPS of $4.23 versus $3.74 expected, while also raising its quarterly dividend to $1.10 per share from $1.05.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd decreased its position in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Free Report) by 48.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,962 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after selling 10,498 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Diamondback Energy were worth $2,178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Diamondback Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 245.1% in the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 176 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Diamondback Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Institutional investors own 90.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Diamondback Energy

In related news, Director Charles Alvin Meloy sold 83,334 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.12, for a total value of $15,593,458.08. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 851,530 shares in the company, valued at $159,338,293.60. This trade represents a 8.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Matt Zmigrosky sold 5,000 shares of Diamondback Energy stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.54, for a total transaction of $1,002,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,392 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,303,451.68. The trade was a 9.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 113,691 shares of company stock valued at $21,622,752 in the last 90 days. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on FANG. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Diamondback Energy from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Diamondback Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $242.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $237.00 to $241.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $212.00 target price on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Diamondback Energy has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $218.68.

Diamondback Energy Stock Up 2.3%

FANG stock opened at $199.80 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $191.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $181.66. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $134.30 and a fifty-two week high of $214.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.56. The company has a market cap of $56.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 232.33 and a beta of 0.42.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The oil and natural gas company reported $4.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.74 by $0.49. Diamondback Energy had a return on equity of 7.76% and a net margin of 1.87%.The business had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.54 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 18.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were given a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. This is a positive change from Diamondback Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Diamondback Energy's payout ratio is currently 511.63%.

Diamondback Energy Company Profile

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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