Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG) Shares Sold by Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC

Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC reduced its position in Diamondback Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:FANG - Free Report) by 77.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,110 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after selling 7,201 shares during the period. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Diamondback Energy were worth $346,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Diamondback Energy in the third quarter valued at about $1,215,000. Fulcrum Equity Management acquired a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the third quarter valued at about $206,000. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 2,027 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 205 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Diamondback Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,935,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Diamondback Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $138,000. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Diamondback Energy Stock Performance

Shares of FANG traded up $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $136.76. 1,608,355 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,101,124. The business's 50 day moving average price is $145.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $162.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.22 billion, a PE ratio of 7.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.45. Diamondback Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $114.00 and a 1-year high of $214.50.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The oil and natural gas company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.07. Diamondback Energy had a net margin of 33.64% and a return on equity of 13.68%. The firm had revenue of $3.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.55 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Diamondback Energy, Inc. will post 15.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Diamondback Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Diamondback Energy's payout ratio is 25.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Diamondback Energy from $215.00 to $207.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $210.00 target price on shares of Diamondback Energy in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. KeyCorp reduced their price target on Diamondback Energy from $216.00 to $180.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Williams Trading set a $190.00 target price on Diamondback Energy in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Diamondback Energy from a "reduce" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $157.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $200.96.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Frank D. Tsuru acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $156.51 per share, for a total transaction of $313,020.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at $896,802.30. The trade was a 53.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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.