Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Brokerages

Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Hold" from the fourteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $36.31.

Several research firms have issued reports on MUR. Roth Capital set a $37.00 price objective on Murphy Oil in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Monday, February 3rd.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MUR traded up $1.24 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $25.40. The company had a trading volume of 3,210,464 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,787,329. Murphy Oil has a 52 week low of $22.90 and a 52 week high of $49.14. The business's 50-day moving average is $29.00 and its 200 day moving average is $31.86. The company has a market cap of $3.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.44 and a beta of 2.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.83.

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Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 last year, the business earned $0.90 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.325 per share. This is a boost from Murphy Oil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.12%. Murphy Oil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.33%.

Insider Transactions at Murphy Oil

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

Institutional Trading of Murphy Oil

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MUR. Lindenwold Advisors INC lifted its holdings in Murphy Oil by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 10,529 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 25,069 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $759,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,903 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 471 shares during the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 6,574 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 494 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Murphy Oil by 266.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 741 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. 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.