Northern Oil and Gas Shares Popped: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of oil producer Northern Oil and Gas (ASE: NOG) jumped 10% today after the company announced increased production and reserves.

So what: Management reported 34.8 million barrels of proven oil equivalent reserves, an increase of 121% from the beginning of the year. But the great news was an unexpected production bump of 30% to 40% in the third quarter.

Now what: To top it off, Global Hunter Securities upgraded Northern Oil to a buy rating this morning. Estimated future cash flows, discounted at 10%, have increased from $295.5 million at the end of 2010 to $870.5 million today showing the potential growth of production. Oil prices will impact potential earnings going forward, but today's news is definitely a great sign for the continued growth of this oil producer.

Interested in more info on Northern Oil and Gas? Add it to your watchlist byclicking here.

At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Travis Hoium does not have a position in any company mentioned. You can follow Travis on Twitter at @FlushDrawFool, check out his personal stock holdings or follow his CAPS picks at TMFFlushDraw.Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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