Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Increases Position in Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 338,861 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,961 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Northern Oil and Gas were worth $12,592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,273,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $418,916,000 after buying an additional 166,501 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Northern Oil and Gas by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,537,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $242,937,000 after purchasing an additional 243,531 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Northern Oil and Gas by 4.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,283,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,884,000 after purchasing an additional 100,761 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Northern Oil and Gas by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 2,114,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,590,000 after buying an additional 18,195 shares during the period. Finally, Channing Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 26.8% during the fourth quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 1,766,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,648,000 after buying an additional 373,917 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Northern Oil and Gas

In related news, Director Bahram Akradi bought 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,662,016 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,586,308.48. This trade represents a 2.47 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, President Adam A. Dirlam sold 836 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.00, for a total value of $32,604.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 96,223 shares of the company’s stock, 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. 2.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on NOG shares. Citigroup reduced their price target on Northern Oil and Gas from $55.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of 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. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Northern Oil and Gas from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Mizuho lowered Northern Oil and Gas from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Northern Oil and Gas from $43.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. One investment 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.33.

Northern Oil and Gas Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE:NOG opened at $30.24 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.83. The company has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a PE ratio of 5.88 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. has a 12 month low of $26.60 and a 12 month high of $44.31.

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $545.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $552.34 million. Northern Oil and Gas had a net margin of 23.38% and a return on equity of 24.41%. Research analysts forecast that Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Oil and Gas announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, March 11th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 3.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Northern Oil and Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.95%. 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. Northern Oil and Gas’s payout ratio is 35.02%.

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.