Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Shares Down 5.2% Following Analyst Downgrade

Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) shares fell 5.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Scotiabank lowered their price target on the stock from $36.00 to $22.00. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the stock. Murphy Oil traded as low as $20.65 and last traded at $20.34. 1,298,556 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the average session volume of 1,945,398 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.46.

MUR has been the subject of several other reports. UBS Group lowered their target price on Murphy Oil from $28.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. KeyCorp dropped 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. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Murphy Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Murphy Oil currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $33.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Meenambigai Palanivelu purchased 1,573 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the purchase, the vice president now owns 37,065 shares of the company's stock, valued at $989,635.50. This trade represents a 4.43 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Claiborne P. Deming acquired 50,000 shares of Murphy Oil stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were acquired 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 owns 931,651 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,660,801.97. This trade represents a 5.67 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 5.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MUR. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 342.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 828 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. GeoWealth Management LLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 60.5% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 177.8% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,725 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 1,104 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.31% of the company's stock.

Murphy Oil Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $26.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.78. The firm has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 7.66% and a net margin of 13.44%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Murphy Oil Co. will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.325 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Murphy Oil's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.33%.

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.