Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Trading 3.4% Higher – Still a Buy?

Shares of Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) were up 3.4% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $35.85 and last traded at $36.00. Approximately 739,867 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 2,492,964 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.82.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $30.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Murphy Oil from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $29.42.

Murphy Oil Stock Up 1.3%

The stock has a market capitalization of $5.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.97 and a beta of 0.72. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $613.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $650.90 million. Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 3.73% and a net margin of 3.83%.The company’s revenue was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.35 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Murphy Oil Corporation will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy Oil Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a $0.35 dividend. This is a boost from Murphy Oil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 194.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Murphy Oil by 67.3% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,094 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 72.9% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,701 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Murphy Oil by 39.7% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,440 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 693 shares during the last quarter. 78.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Murphy Oil Company Profile

Murphy Oil Corporation is an independent upstream oil and gas company engaged in the exploration, development and production of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. The company’s operations encompass conventional onshore and offshore reservoirs, with an emphasis on liquids-rich properties and deepwater assets. Through a combination of proprietary technologies and strategic joint ventures, Murphy Oil seeks to optimize recovery rates and manage its portfolio to balance long-term resource development with operational flexibility.

Murphy Oil’s exploration and production activities are geographically diversified.