Analysts Set Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) PT at $39.58

Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the fourteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $39.58.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MUR shares. Truist Financial cut their price target on Murphy Oil from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $39.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $43.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Murphy Oil from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Murphy Oil by 19.8% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,269 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 1,036 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in Murphy Oil by 5.5% in the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 121,742 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $5,021,000 after buying an additional 6,341 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Murphy Oil during the second quarter worth $216,000. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil during the second quarter valued at $251,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Murphy Oil by 5.3% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,138,985 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $88,212,000 after acquiring an additional 107,462 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.31% of the company’s stock.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

MUR opened at $28.23 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $31.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.88. Murphy Oil has a 52-week low of $27.75 and a 52-week high of $49.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.11 and a beta of 2.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.71.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $758.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $759.74 million. Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 9.22% and a net margin of 14.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.59 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Murphy Oil will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

Murphy Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.25%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.71%.

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.