Morgan Stanley Lowers Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Price Target to $206.00

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) had its target price reduced by Morgan Stanley from $227.00 to $206.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the oil and natural gas company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $210.00 price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Diamondback Energy from $252.00 to $232.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Diamondback Energy from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Williams Trading set a $190.00 target price on Diamondback Energy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Diamondback Energy from $236.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $209.33.

Diamondback Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FANG opened at $160.23 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $159.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $169.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.17, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Diamondback Energy has a 52 week low of $137.09 and a 52 week high of $214.50.

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The oil and natural gas company reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.07. Diamondback Energy had a return on equity of 13.68% and a net margin of 33.64%. The firm had revenue of $3.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.55 billion. Analysts anticipate that Diamondback Energy will post 15.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is an increase from Diamondback Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Diamondback Energy’s payout ratio is currently 25.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Frank D. Tsuru purchased 2,000 shares of Diamondback Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $156.51 per share, with a total value of $313,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $896,802.30. This trade represents a 53.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FANG. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 2,455 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $423,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC acquired a new position in Diamondback Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $201,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 27.7% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 443 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Diamondback Energy by 17.5% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 171,737 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $29,607,000 after buying an additional 25,603 shares during the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 14,185 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $2,446,000 after buying an additional 1,092 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.01% 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.