Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Cuts Stake in Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lowered its holdings in shares of Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG) by 5.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 94,420 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,720 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Northern Oil and Gas were worth $3,509,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Northern Oil and Gas during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 177.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 801 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Northern Oil and Gas during the 4th quarter valued at about $66,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Northern Oil and Gas by 297.3% during the 4th 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 during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in Northern Oil and Gas by 187.3% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 1,530 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.80% of the company’s stock.

Northern Oil and Gas Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:NOG opened at $26.61 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 1.47. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $25.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.98. Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. has a 52-week low of $19.88 and a 52-week high of $44.31.

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $602.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $568.87 million. Northern Oil and Gas had a return on equity of 24.41% and a net margin of 23.38%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 51.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.28 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. will post 5.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northern Oil and Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. Northern Oil and Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.04%.

Northern Oil and Gas declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 3.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on NOG. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Northern Oil and Gas from $34.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Capital One Financial lowered shares of Northern Oil and Gas from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped 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 report on Thursday, March 27th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Northern Oil and Gas from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Northern Oil and Gas in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Northern Oil and Gas has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $39.67.

Insider Activity

In other Northern Oil and Gas news, Director Bahram Akradi bought 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $28.03 per share, for a total transaction of $1,121,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Nicholas L. O’grady purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $27.48 per share, for a total transaction of $27,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,189 shares in the company, 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 2.90% of the company’s stock.

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.