JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has Lowered Expectations for Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG) Stock Price

Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ:FANG - Free Report) had its price objective trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $212.00 to $167.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the oil and natural gas company's stock.

FANG has been the subject of several other research reports. Raymond James cut their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $245.00 to $214.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group upped their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $212.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded Diamondback Energy from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Diamondback Energy in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $227.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Diamondback Energy from $219.00 to $215.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Diamondback Energy has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $211.92.

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Diamondback Energy Stock Performance

FANG traded up $4.40 during trading on Thursday, reaching $150.20. 2,738,677 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,477,099. The stock has a market cap of $43.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.60, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.84. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $162.00 and a 200 day moving average of $171.85. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The oil and natural gas company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $3.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.55 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Diamondback Energy will post 15.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Diamondback Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.66%. This is an increase from Diamondback Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Diamondback Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Diamondback Energy news, Director Frank D. Tsuru purchased 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $156.51 per share, with a total value of $313,020.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $896,802.30. This trade represents a 53.62 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Diamondback Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co acquired a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $901,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Diamondback Energy by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 8,964 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $1,469,000 after buying an additional 2,134 shares during the period. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. TFR Capital LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $1,476,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Diamondback Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $129,000. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.