Insider Selling: Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Director Sells 7,857 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Director Charles Alvin Meloy sold 7,857 shares at an average price of $183.27 for about $1.44 million, trimming his stake to 974,149 shares (a 0.8% reduction); he also sold 60,605 shares on Feb. 3 at $161.12.
• Large shareholder activity and insider sales pressured the stock: SGF priced an 11,000,000‑share secondary offering (~$1.9B) that won’t benefit Diamondback and combined insider sellings (including the chairman) helped trigger a mid‑day slump.
• Operational and shareholder updates: Diamondback missed quarterly EPS estimates ($1.74 vs. $2.00) with revenue down ~9% year‑over‑year, but raised its quarterly dividend to $1.05 (annualized $4.20, ~2.4% yield).

Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) Director Charles Alvin Meloy sold 7,857 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.27, for a total value of $1,439,952.39. Following the transaction, the director owned 974,149 shares in the company, valued at approximately $178,532,287.23. This trade represents a 0.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Charles Alvin Meloy also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, February 3rd, Charles Alvin Meloy sold 60,605 shares of Diamondback Energy stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.12, for a total transaction of $9,764,677.60.

Diamondback Energy Price Performance

Shares of FANG stock traded down $1.73 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $176.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,181,769 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,672,681. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $114.00 and a fifty-two week high of $186.65. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $162.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $151.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market capitalization of $49.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.49 and a beta of 0.59.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The oil and natural gas company reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.26). Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 11.07% and a return on equity of 8.08%. The company had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.41 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.67 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be given a $1.05 dividend. This is a boost from Diamondback Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. Diamondback Energy's dividend payout ratio is 74.87%.

Key Stories Impacting Diamondback Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting Diamondback Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs raised its price target on FANG to $212 and reiterated a "buy" rating, implying ~20% upside versus the recent price — a support for the stock amid near-term selling pressure. Goldman Sachs raises FANG target to $212 (Benzinga)
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research increased longer‑term FY2027 and several Q3/Q4 2026–27 EPS forecasts (and raised some later-quarter estimates), suggesting improving earnings power over time even as near‑term quarters were adjusted. Zacks Research updates estimates for Diamondback (MarketBeat)
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note FANG has outperformed the S&P 500 over the past year and that analysts remain broadly optimistic — a positive backdrop but not an immediate catalyst versus today’s news flow. Is Diamondback Energy Stock Outperforming the S&P 500? (Barchart)
• Negative Sentiment: SGF FANG Holdings priced an underwritten secondary offering of 11,000,000 common shares (~$1.9B gross proceeds); Diamondback will not receive proceeds. Large block supply from a major holder is weighing on the stock. Diamondback prices secondary offering (GlobeNewswire)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Chairman Travis D. Stice disclosed sizable sales (reported on Form 4), reducing his stake materially — signals that often pressure sentiment when combined with a large shareholder sale. Chairman insider sales (SEC Form 4)
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: coverage and market movers lists tie a mid‑day slump in FANG to the follow‑on offering and insider sales; contemporaneous drops in crude/natural‑gas prices also pressured the sector. These Stocks Are Today’s Movers: Oracle, Diamondback Energy... (Yahoo Finance)
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks trimmed several near‑term (Q1–Q2–Q3 2026 and FY2026) EPS estimates — a headwind for near‑term earnings expectations even though later‑year estimates were lifted. Zacks cuts near-term estimates for Diamondback (MarketBeat)

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on FANG shares. TD Cowen upgraded Diamondback Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $194.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $173.00 target price on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Monday, January 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $187.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Scotiabank set a $175.00 price target on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $190.10.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Diamondback Energy by 78.3% in the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 15,178 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $2,086,000 after purchasing an additional 6,665 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy during the second quarter worth $1,113,000. Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its stake in Diamondback Energy by 32.8% during the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 3,587 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $493,000 after buying an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 2.4% in the second quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 10,144 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $1,394,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Diamondback Energy by 13.7% in the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,328 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $4,030,000 after buying an additional 3,545 shares during the period. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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