Diamondback Energy, Inc. $FANG Position Lessened by Zimmer Partners LP

Key Points

• Zimmer Partners LP has reduced its holdings in Diamondback Energy, Inc. by 19.0%, selling 100,000 shares to hold a total of 425,000 shares, which represent 1.3% of its investment portfolio.
• Diamondback Energy reported earnings of $2.67 per share, missing analysts' estimates, but generated revenues of $3.68 billion, exceeding expectations.
• The firm declared a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.9%.

Zimmer Partners LP trimmed its position in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Free Report) by 19.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 425,000 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after selling 100,000 shares during the quarter. Diamondback Energy accounts for approximately 1.3% of Zimmer Partners LP's portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Zimmer Partners LP owned about 0.15% of Diamondback Energy worth $67,949,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of FANG. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Diamondback Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $230,039,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 16,197.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 605,625 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $96,827,000 after purchasing an additional 601,909 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the first quarter valued at about $77,622,000. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 5,748.3% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 448,624 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $73,498,000 after buying an additional 440,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 27.3% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,950,160 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $311,792,000 after buying an additional 418,431 shares in the last quarter. 90.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Diamondback Energy

In other news, Chairman Travis D. Stice sold 20,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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. The trade was a 16.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Diamondback Energy Stock Down 1.1%

NASDAQ FANG traded down $1.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $136.88. 1,751,998 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,376,545. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $114.00 and a 1-year high of $200.47. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $142.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market cap of $39.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.73 and a beta of 1.14.

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 business had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. During the same quarter last 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. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 EPS for the current year.

Diamondback Energy Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on FANG. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on Diamondback Energy from $221.00 to $212.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Bank of America increased their target price on Diamondback Energy from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group increased their target price on Diamondback Energy from $163.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. William Blair began coverage on Diamondback Energy in a research note on Monday, August 25th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $193.17.

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.