Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Price Target Cut to $43.00 by Analysts at Piper Sandler

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) had its target price cut by Piper Sandler from $44.00 to $43.00 in a research note published on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on MUR. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Barclays reduced their target price on Murphy Oil from $46.00 to $38.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Murphy Oil from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Murphy Oil from $43.00 to $39.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $41.50.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

NYSE MUR opened at $33.27 on Tuesday. Murphy Oil has a 12-month low of $32.53 and a 12-month high of $49.14. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.27 and a beta of 2.20.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.08. Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 11.68% and a net margin of 17.32%. The company had revenue of $802.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $813.97 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Murphy Oil will post 3.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Murphy Oil’s payout ratio is currently 33.43%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy Oil

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MUR. Mather Group LLC. increased its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 1,015.7% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 569 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 518 shares in the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Murphy Oil by 1,434.5% in the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,289 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 1,205 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its position in 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 worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 758 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in Murphy Oil by 27.0% during the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 2,105 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.