UBS Group Lowers Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Price Target to $23.00

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) had its price objective decreased by UBS Group from $28.00 to $23.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on MUR. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Roth Capital set a $37.00 target price on Murphy Oil in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Murphy Oil from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Murphy Oil from $33.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.23.

Murphy Oil Stock Up 18.4 %

Shares of MUR opened at $23.23 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $26.25 and its 200 day moving average is $29.98. 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 has a 12-month low of $18.95 and a 12-month high of $48.64. The company has a market capitalization of $3.32 billion, a PE ratio of 8.64 and a beta of 1.68.

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

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $0.325 dividend. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Trading of Murphy Oil

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Foundry Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 227,680 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $6,890,000 after purchasing an additional 34,620 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Murphy Oil by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,857,702 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $56,214,000 after purchasing an additional 13,263 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Murphy Oil during the 4th quarter worth $618,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Murphy Oil during the 4th quarter valued at $678,000. Finally, Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the 4th quarter worth $1,230,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.31% of the company’s stock.

Murphy Oil Company Profile

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.