Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) vs. Gulfport Energy (NYSE:GPOR) Head-To-Head Comparison

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) and Gulfport Energy (NYSE:GPOR) are both mid-cap energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, dividends, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Northern Oil and Gas and Gulfport Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Northern Oil and Gas	2	4	4	0	2.20
Gulfport Energy	0	6	8	1	2.67

Northern Oil and Gas presently has a consensus target price of $33.00, suggesting a potential upside of 47.51%. Gulfport Energy has a consensus target price of $230.22, suggesting a potential upside of 36.61%. Given Northern Oil and Gas’ higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Northern Oil and Gas is more favorable than Gulfport Energy.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Northern Oil and Gas and Gulfport Energy”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Northern Oil and Gas	$2.48 billion	0.96	$38.76 million	($6.37)	-3.51
Gulfport Energy	$1.42 billion	2.13	$427.81 million	$29.27	5.76

Gulfport Energy has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Northern Oil and Gas. Northern Oil and Gas is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Gulfport Energy, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

98.8% of Northern Oil and Gas shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.8% of Northern Oil and Gas shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of Gulfport Energy shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk & Volatility

Northern Oil and Gas has a beta of 0.68, suggesting that its share price is 32% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Gulfport Energy has a beta of 0.41, suggesting that its share price is 59% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Northern Oil and Gas and Gulfport Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Northern Oil and Gas	-33.17%	18.43%	7.14%
Gulfport Energy	35.72%	23.51%	14.19%

Summary

Gulfport Energy beats Northern Oil and Gas on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Northern Oil and Gas

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. The company is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota.

About Gulfport Energy

Gulfport Energy Corporation engages in the exploration, development, acquisition, production of natural gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the United States. Its principal properties include Utica Shale covering an area approximately 187,000 net reservoir acres primarily located in Eastern Ohio; and SCOOP covering an area approximately 74,000 net reservoir acres primarily located in Garvin, Grady, and Stephens. As of December 31, 2021, it had 3.9 trillion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent to proved reserves; and proved undeveloped reserves comprising 8 MMbbl oil and 22 MMBbl NGL, and 1,550 Bcf natural gas. The company was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.