Praxis Investment Management Inc. Increases Position in Diamondback Energy, Inc. $FANG

Key Points

• Praxis Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Diamondback Energy, Inc. by 39.0% during the second quarter, now holding 7,020 shares valued at approximately $965,000.
• Analysts have a strong outlook on Diamondback Energy, with an average rating of "Buy" and a price target of $189.91 despite a recent quarter earnings miss.
• Diamondback Energy declared a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share, yielding 2.9%, indicating a stable return to investors.

Praxis Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Free Report) by 39.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,020 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,970 shares during the period. Praxis Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Diamondback Energy were worth $965,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Davidson Investment Advisors increased its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 57,759 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $7,936,000 after purchasing an additional 669 shares during the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 42.6% in the 2nd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 1,055 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,613 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $1,183,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102 shares during the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. increased its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 47.9% in the 2nd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 9,957 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $1,368,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 181.6% in the 2nd quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 3,551 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $488,000 after purchasing an additional 2,290 shares during the last quarter. 90.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on FANG. Melius began coverage on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $213.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Thursday, October 9th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $163.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $186.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $183.00 to $176.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Diamondback Energy currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $189.91.

Diamondback Energy Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:FANG opened at $139.09 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $40.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.89 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $142.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $140.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.52. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $114.00 and a 1-year high of $186.74.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. Diamondback Energy had a return on equity of 9.48% and a net margin of 27.25%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 48.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.52 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 EPS for the current year.

Diamondback Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. 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 is currently 28.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Travis D. Stice sold 20,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.80, for a total transaction of $2,913,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 102,145 shares in the company, valued at $14,586,306. This represents a 16.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Diamondback Energy Company 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.

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