Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR)

Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR - Free Report) by 71.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 100,000 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 250,000 shares during the period. Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC owned 0.07% of Murphy Oil worth $3,026,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lindenwold Advisors INC boosted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 10,529 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Murphy Oil by 1.8% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in shares of 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 period. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,276 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $144,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC raised 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 buying an additional 543 shares during the period. 78.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MUR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Murphy Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Roth Capital set a $37.00 price target on Murphy Oil in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of 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 reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $37.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $36.31.

Insider Activity

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

Murphy Oil Stock Down 1.5 %

Murphy Oil stock traded down $0.38 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $25.27. The stock had a trading volume of 3,423,170 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,742,329. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Murphy Oil Co. has a 52-week low of $22.90 and a 52-week high of $49.14. The stock has a market cap of $3.69 billion, a PE ratio of 9.39 and a beta of 2.18. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $28.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.70.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last released 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $0.90 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Murphy Oil Co. will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Murphy Oil Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders 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. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.14%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Murphy Oil's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.