Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC trimmed its position in Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR - Free Report) by 40.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 121,747 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 83,185 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned 0.08% of Murphy Oil worth $3,769,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MUR. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 3,191.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,627,268 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $54,904,000 after acquiring an additional 1,577,831 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its position in Murphy Oil by 91.6% during the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,751,737 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $53,008,000 after purchasing an additional 837,282 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in Murphy Oil by 399.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,012,944 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $34,177,000 after purchasing an additional 810,104 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Murphy Oil by 26.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,595,260 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $53,824,000 after purchasing an additional 336,372 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&G PLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil during the 3rd quarter worth $8,766,000. 78.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MUR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $37.00 target price on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Murphy Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $36.38.

Murphy Oil Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of MUR traded up $0.35 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $27.66. The stock had a trading volume of 3,288,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,616,357. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.28 and a beta of 2.14. Murphy Oil Co. has a 1-year low of $25.26 and a 1-year high of $49.14.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.35 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 period last year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Murphy Oil Co. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $0.325 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from Murphy Oil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.70%. Murphy Oil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.33%.

Insider Activity

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

Murphy Oil 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.