Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) Shares Sold by Wedge Capital Management L L P NC

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC trimmed its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) by 8.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 671,014 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 62,860 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned 0.47% of Murphy Oil worth $19,057,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 342.8% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 828 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in Murphy Oil during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Murphy Oil during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy Oil by 60.5% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 543 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in Murphy Oil by 177.8% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,725 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 1,104 shares in the last quarter. 78.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy Oil Stock Up 4.5%

NYSE:MUR opened at $22.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.36 and a beta of 1.09. Murphy Oil Co. has a one year low of $18.95 and a one year high of $43.02. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.47.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.08. Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 7.66% and a net margin of 13.44%. The company had revenue of $665.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $684.89 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.85 EPS. Murphy Oil’s quarterly revenue was down 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Murphy Oil Co. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a $0.325 dividend. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MUR shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $28.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Johnson Rice downgraded shares of Murphy Oil from an “accumulate” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Murphy Oil from $35.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Mizuho lowered Murphy Oil from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy Oil has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $29.23.

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.