Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) Given New $41.00 Price Target at Bank of America

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) had its price target lowered by Bank of America from $48.00 to $41.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on NOG. Mizuho downgraded Northern Oil and Gas from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Northern Oil and Gas from $55.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Capital One Financial lowered shares of Northern Oil and Gas from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Northern Oil and Gas from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Northern Oil and Gas from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.44.

Northern Oil and Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NOG stock opened at $26.01 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 0.92. Northern Oil and Gas has a 52 week low of $25.95 and a 52 week high of $44.31. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.68.

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.27 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $545.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $552.34 million. Northern Oil and Gas had a net margin of 23.38% and a return on equity of 24.41%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Northern Oil and Gas will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Oil and Gas declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 11th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 3.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Northern Oil and Gas Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This is a positive change from Northern Oil and Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.92%. Northern Oil and Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northern Oil and Gas

In related news, Director Bahram Akradi purchased 40,000 shares of Northern Oil and Gas stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $28.03 per share, for a total transaction of $1,121,200.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,662,016 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,586,308.48. This trade represents a 2.47 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nicholas L. O’grady purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.48 per share, for a total transaction of $27,480.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,189 shares in the company, valued at $6,215,673.72. The trade was a 0.44 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Northern Oil and Gas

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOG. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,372 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 3,473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 13,112 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,378 shares of the company’s stock valued at $386,000 after buying an additional 329 shares during the period. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Northern Oil and Gas by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 6,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 349 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.80% of the company’s stock.

Northern Oil and Gas Company Profile

Northern Oil and Gas, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, exploitation, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas properties in the United States. It primarily holds interests in the Williston Basin, the Appalachian Basin, and the Permian Basin in the United States.