Royal Bank of Canada Lowers Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) Price Target to $34.00

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG - Free Report) had its price objective reduced by Royal Bank of Canada from $40.00 to $34.00 in a research note published on Monday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on NOG. Mizuho downgraded Northern Oil and Gas from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $47.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Northern Oil and Gas from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Truist Financial lifted their target price 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. Citigroup cut their price target on Northern Oil and Gas from $55.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Northern Oil and Gas from $48.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $44.78.

Northern Oil and Gas Stock Up 5.7 %

Northern Oil and Gas stock traded up $1.32 during trading on Monday, reaching $24.25. The stock had a trading volume of 2,133,261 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,486,146. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Northern Oil and Gas has a 52-week low of $19.88 and a 52-week high of $44.31. The stock has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a PE ratio of 4.72 and a beta of 1.49. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $28.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.48.

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $552.34 million. Northern Oil and Gas had a return on equity of 24.41% and a net margin of 23.38%. On average, analysts predict that Northern Oil and Gas will post 5.18 EPS for the current year.

Northern Oil and Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This is a positive change from Northern Oil and Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Northern Oil and Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.02%.

Northern Oil and Gas announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, March 11th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 3.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Northern Oil and Gas

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NOG. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Northern Oil and Gas by 297.3% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,098 shares of the company's stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,570 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 481,797 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,904,000 after buying an additional 11,690 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its position in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 36.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 77,439 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,877,000 after buying an additional 20,550 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Northern Oil and Gas during the fourth quarter worth about $909,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Northern Oil and Gas by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,058,899 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,349,000 after acquiring an additional 73,256 shares during the period. 98.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.