Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Trading Down 4.1% - Here's What Happened

Shares of Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) were down 4.1% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $23.49 and last traded at $23.43. Approximately 603,341 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 2,628,317 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.43.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MUR shares. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Murphy Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Mizuho cut their price objective on Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $37.00 price objective on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $36.31.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.44 and a beta of 2.18. The business has a 50-day moving average of $29.00 and a 200 day moving average of $31.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

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

Murphy Oil Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.325 per share. This is a positive change from Murphy Oil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Murphy Oil's payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in Murphy Oil by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 16,475 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $555,000 after acquiring an additional 620 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. bought a new stake in Murphy Oil during the 3rd quarter valued at $256,000. M&G PLC bought a new stake in Murphy Oil during the 3rd quarter valued at $8,766,000. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Murphy Oil by 266.8% during the 3rd 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 period. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its holdings in Murphy Oil by 15.3% during the 3rd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 51,295 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,731,000 after acquiring an additional 6,812 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.31% of the company's stock.

About Murphy Oil

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.