Martingale Asset Management L P Buys Shares of 25,990 Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR)

Martingale Asset Management L P bought a new position in Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 25,990 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $786,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Foundry Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 17.9% in the 4th 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 period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,857,702 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $56,214,000 after acquiring an additional 13,263 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Murphy Oil in the 4th quarter worth $618,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Murphy Oil during the fourth quarter valued at about $678,000. Finally, Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,230,000. 78.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

Shares of Murphy Oil stock traded up $0.73 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $21.32. The stock had a trading volume of 3,245,142 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,047,833. 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 Co. has a twelve month low of $18.95 and a twelve month high of $46.91. The stock's 50 day moving average is $25.52 and its 200 day moving average is $29.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a PE ratio of 7.93 and a beta of 1.68.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.35 earnings per share 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $0.90 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Murphy Oil Co. will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.325 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.10%. Murphy Oil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy Oil

In other Murphy Oil news, Director Claiborne P. Deming purchased 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were purchased 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. The trade was a 5.67 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Meenambigai Palanivelu bought 1,573 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $26.70 per share, for a total transaction 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 represents a 4.43 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 6.52% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MUR shares. Truist Financial cut shares of Murphy Oil from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $42.00 to $31.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective 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. Barclays decreased their price target on Murphy Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Scotiabank cut their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $36.00 to $22.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $32.77.

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.