Is Diamondback Energy Stock a Buy on the Dip?

By Lee Samaha | November 11, 2025, 11:23 AM

Key Points

  • Oil and gas stocks have struggled this year due to lower oil prices.

  • Diamondback's relatively low cost of production means it can generate substantive cash flows for investors.

  • Predicting oil prices remains difficult, but the risk-to-reward calculation for the stock is favorable.

It has been a challenging year for oil exploration and production stocks, with many of them tracking the decline in oil prices over the period. Diamondback Energy (NASDAQ: FANG) is no exception, and its 21% fall isn't surprising. Still, it's incredibly tough to predict where the price of oil will go, and on a risk-reward basis, the stock looks like a good value.

Diamondback Energy is well positioned for any recovery in energy prices

Management of the company focused on the Permian Basin spent considerable time highlighting its low-cost investment structure during its recent third-quarter earnings call, and for good reason. A low-cost structure enables the company to generate a relatively good cash flow even when the price of oil isn't high, and it also allows the company to have a relatively low reinvestment rate, thereby preserving more cash flow to return to investors.

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These properties play out in adjusted free cash flow (FCF) guidance, which calls for the following.

Metric

Assuming $50 per Barrel of Oil

Assuming $60 per Barrel of Oil

Assuming $70 per Barrel of Oil

Adjusted Free Cash Flow in 2025

$5.5 billion

$5.8 billion

$6.1 billion

Free Cash Flow Yield*

13.4%

14.1%

14.8%

Data source: Diamondback Energy presentations; author's analysis. *Based on a current stock price of $143.65 and market cap of $14.16 billion

A person quirks their mouth in thought.

Image source: Getty Images.

Based on the current price, Diamondback can generate significant cash flow in 2025, and its commitment to returning 50% of FCF to investors means it could, in theory, pay 6.7% of its market cap in dividends in 2025 at an average price of $50 per barrel of oil. In reality, management tends to prefer a mix of dividend payments and share buybacks. Still, its current annual dividend of $4 per share (yielding 2.8%) has a breakeven price of oil as low as $37 per barrel.

All told, Diamondback offers a compelling option with limited downside and significant upside if the price of oil moves higher, making it an attractive stock on a risk-reward basis.

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Lee Samaha has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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