Rafferty Asset Management LLC Acquires 29,450 Shares of Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. $NOG

Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG) by 24.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 147,997 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,450 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Northern Oil and Gas were worth $3,670,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 1,899,017 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,096,000 after purchasing an additional 158,713 shares during the period. AXQ Capital LP acquired a new stake in Northern Oil and Gas in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $514,000. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Northern Oil and Gas in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,635,000. Channing Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Northern Oil and Gas by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 1,702,177 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,214,000 after acquiring an additional 230,899 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. grew its stake in shares of Northern Oil and Gas by 51.7% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 646,894 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,043,000 after acquiring an additional 220,458 shares in the last quarter. 98.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northern Oil and Gas Price Performance

NYSE:NOG opened at $28.11 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $24.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $23.74. Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. has a 12-month low of $19.88 and a 12-month high of $32.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.18 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Northern Oil and Gas (NYSE:NOG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $610.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $524.98 million. Northern Oil and Gas had a net margin of 1.57% and a return on equity of 19.74%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Northern Oil and Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 30th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. Northern Oil and Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 545.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Mizuho set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Northern Oil and Gas in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $24.00 price target on shares of Northern Oil and Gas and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Northern Oil and Gas from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Northern Oil and Gas in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.29.

About Northern Oil and Gas

Northern Oil and Gas, Inc is a publicly traded independent energy company focused on the acquisition, exploration and development of oil and natural gas resources in the United States. The company’s primary operations are concentrated in the Williston Basin, where it secures acreage positions and partners with drilling operators to advance upstream projects. Through strategic leasehold acquisitions and joint ventures, Northern Oil and Gas seeks to expand its footprint in both conventional and unconventional reservoirs.

Northern Oil and Gas employs horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing technologies to develop unconventional resource plays, particularly in the Bakken, Three Forks and Red River formations of North Dakota and Montana.