Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Buys 1,906 Shares of Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG) by 15.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 14,207 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,906 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Northern Oil and Gas were worth $528,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOG. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas in the 4th quarter worth approximately $219,000. Easterly Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 59.1% in the fourth quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 80,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,992,000 after buying an additional 29,905 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its position in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 23,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $863,000 after buying an additional 876 shares during the last quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. grew its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 59.5% during the 4th quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 98,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,675,000 after acquiring an additional 36,887 shares during the period. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC increased its holdings in Northern Oil and Gas by 43.0% in the 4th quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 11,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $420,000 after acquiring an additional 3,398 shares during the last quarter. 98.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northern Oil and Gas Trading Down 8.6 %

Shares of NOG stock opened at $20.61 on Wednesday. Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.38 and a 52-week high of $44.31. The business’s fifty day moving average is $31.08 and its 200 day moving average is $36.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 0.92. The company has a market capitalization of $2.04 billion, a PE ratio of 4.01 and a beta of 1.49.

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.27 by ($0.16). Northern Oil and Gas had a net margin of 23.38% and a return on equity of 24.41%. The business had revenue of $545.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $552.34 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. will post 5.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northern Oil and Gas announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, March 11th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 3.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board 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. Shareholders 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 8.73%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This is a boost from Northern Oil and Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Northern Oil and Gas’s payout ratio is currently 35.02%.

Insider Transactions at Northern Oil and Gas

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on NOG. Morgan Stanley cut their target price 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 report on Thursday, March 27th. Mizuho lowered shares of 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 note on Monday, December 16th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada reduced 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Capital One Financial cut 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northern Oil and Gas presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.44.

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.