Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have issued a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $34.92.

Several research analysts recently commented on MUR shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $33.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Truist Financial cut Murphy Oil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $42.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

MUR stock opened at $22.35 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $26.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.45. Murphy Oil has a 1 year low of $22.02 and a 1 year high of $49.14. The stock has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a PE ratio of 8.31 and a beta of 2.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by ($0.27). Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 7.66% and a net margin of 13.44%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.90 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.325 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.82%. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Insider Transactions at Murphy Oil

In other Murphy Oil news, VP Meenambigai Palanivelu bought 1,573 shares of Murphy Oil stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $26.70 per share, with a total value of $41,999.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 37,065 shares in the company, valued at $989,635.50. The trade was a 4.43 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Claiborne P. Deming purchased 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $26.47 per share, for a total transaction of $1,323,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 931,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,660,801.97. This trade represents a 5.67 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 5.92% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 342.8% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 828 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in Murphy Oil by 60.5% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 177.8% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,725 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 1,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 32.9% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,903 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 471 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.31% of the company’s stock.

About Murphy Oil

Murphy Oil Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an oil and gas exploration and production company in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It explores for and produces crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids. The company was formerly known as Murphy Corporation and changed its name to Murphy Oil Corporation in 1964.