Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Reaches New 52-Week Low - Should You Sell?

Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $25.26 and last traded at $26.47, with a volume of 3525287 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $25.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MUR has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Murphy Oil from $35.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $37.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Truist Financial downgraded Murphy Oil from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $42.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho lowered their target price on Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Murphy Oil from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Murphy Oil presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $36.33.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company's fifty day moving average is $30.21 and its 200 day moving average is $33.46. The firm has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.77 and a beta of 2.14.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.35 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 last year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Murphy Oil Co. will post 3.33 EPS for the current year.

Murphy Oil Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.325 per share. 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 yield of 4.95%. Murphy Oil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.61%.

Insider Activity

In other Murphy Oil news, Director Claiborne P. Deming acquired 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $26.47 per share, for a total transaction of $1,323,500.00. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Meenambigai Palanivelu acquired 1,573 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $26.70 per share, with a total value of $41,999.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 37,065 shares in the company, valued at $989,635.50. This represents a 4.43 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 5.95% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Murphy Oil

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MUR. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Murphy Oil by 266.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 741 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Murphy Oil during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 60.5% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 106.5% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 758 shares in 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.