Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the fifteen analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have assigned a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $36.8182.

MUR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Murphy Oil from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Barclays increased their price target on Murphy Oil from $36.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Murphy Oil from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

Shares of MUR stock opened at $36.26 on Friday. Murphy Oil has a 1-year low of $20.78 and a 1-year high of $43.34. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $39.17 and its 200 day moving average is $34.63. The company has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.47 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.03. Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 3.09% and a net margin of 3.02%.The company had revenue of $732.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $702.96 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.56 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Murphy Oil will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 237.29%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Daniel R. Hanchera sold 47,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.79, for a total value of $1,598,942.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 36,166 shares in the company, valued at $1,222,049.14. This trade represents a 56.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 5.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Murphy Oil

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MUR. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Murphy Oil by 14,700.0% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 740 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 735 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 67.3% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,094 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 78.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy Oil Company Profile

Murphy Oil Corporation is an independent upstream oil and gas company engaged in the exploration, development and production of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. The company’s operations encompass conventional onshore and offshore reservoirs, with an emphasis on liquids-rich properties and deepwater assets. Through a combination of proprietary technologies and strategic joint ventures, Murphy Oil seeks to optimize recovery rates and manage its portfolio to balance long-term resource development with operational flexibility.

Murphy Oil’s exploration and production activities are geographically diversified.