Morgan Stanley Cuts Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) Price Target to $38.00

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) had its price target cut by Morgan Stanley from $43.00 to $38.00 in a research note published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

NOG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Citigroup cut their target price 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. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Northern Oil and Gas from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Northern Oil and Gas from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Mizuho cut Northern Oil and Gas from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Capital One Financial lowered Northern Oil and Gas from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.33.

Northern Oil and Gas Trading Down 2.1 %

Northern Oil and Gas stock opened at $30.19 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.87 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 $26.60 and a 52 week high of $44.31.

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) last issued 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). Northern Oil and Gas had a return on equity of 24.41% and a net margin of 23.38%. The business had revenue of $545.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $552.34 million. Analysts expect that Northern Oil and Gas will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Oil and Gas declared that its board has approved a stock 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 purchase up to 3.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northern Oil and Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This is an increase from Northern Oil and Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Northern Oil and Gas’s payout ratio is 35.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northern Oil and Gas

In other Northern Oil and Gas news, CEO Nicholas L. O’grady bought 1,000 shares of Northern Oil and Gas stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $27.48 per share, with a total value of $27,480.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 226,189 shares in the company, valued at $6,215,673.72. This trade represents a 0.44 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Adam A. Dirlam sold 836 shares of Northern Oil and Gas stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.00, for a total value of $32,604.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 96,223 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,752,697. The trade was a 0.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Northern Oil and Gas

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NOG. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 16.3% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 39,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,396,000 after acquiring an additional 5,524 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Northern Oil and Gas in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $951,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Northern Oil and Gas by 11.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 985,643 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,902,000 after buying an additional 103,314 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 135.6% during the third quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 511,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,101,000 after buying an additional 294,223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 37.8% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 9,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $328,000 after buying an additional 2,541 shares during the last quarter. 98.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.