Legal & General Group Plc Invests $5.79 Million in Murphy Oil Corporation $MUR

Key Points

• Legal & General Group acquired 177,788 Murphy Oil shares worth approximately $5.79 million, giving it a 0.12% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 78.31% of the company.
• Murphy Oil reported quarterly revenue of $926.33 million, up 33.5% year over year and above estimates, while EPS of $1.55 narrowly missed consensus by $0.02.
• The company maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, equivalent to an annualized $1.40 payout and a 3.8% yield. Analysts have an overall “Hold” rating with an average price target of $37.25.

Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 177,788 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $5,789,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.12% of Murphy Oil as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $626,514,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in Murphy Oil by 105.6% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,310,884 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $136,574,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700,498 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil in the second quarter valued at $49,681,000. SIR Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil in the third quarter valued at $30,896,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Murphy Oil in the third quarter valued at $21,096,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.31% of the company's stock.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

MUR stock opened at $37.27 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $35.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.84. Murphy Oil Corporation has a 12-month low of $24.49 and a 12-month high of $43.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $5.34 billion, a PE ratio of 18.45 and a beta of 0.50.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by ($0.02). Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 6.63% and a net margin of 9.74%.The firm had revenue of $926.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $888.51 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.27 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 33.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Murphy Oil Corporation will post 2.77 EPS for the current year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. Murphy Oil's payout ratio is 69.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MUR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Mizuho upgraded shares of Murphy Oil to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Scotiabank reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Seaport Research Partners started coverage on Murphy Oil in a research report on Thursday. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Barclays downgraded Murphy Oil from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $38.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $37.25.

Murphy Oil 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.

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