Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Downgraded to "Neutral" Rating by Mizuho

Mizuho downgraded shares of Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Free Report) from an outperform rating to a neutral rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has $31.00 target price on the oil and gas producer's stock, down from their previous target price of $32.00.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $36.00 to $22.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $27.00 target price on shares of Murphy Oil and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Roth Capital set a $37.00 target price on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. KeyCorp reiterated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Truist Financial lowered shares of Murphy Oil from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $42.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Murphy Oil presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $29.31.

Murphy Oil Stock Down 2.2%

MUR traded down $0.51 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $22.06. 1,874,702 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,192,073. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The business's 50 day moving average is $23.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.65. Murphy Oil has a fifty-two week low of $18.95 and a fifty-two week high of $43.44. The stock has a market cap of $3.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.20 and a beta of 1.10.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.08. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 13.44% and a return on equity of 7.66%. The firm had revenue of $665.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $684.89 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.85 EPS. The business's revenue was down 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.325 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.89%. Murphy Oil's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in Murphy Oil by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 9,576 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $304,000 after purchasing an additional 1,503 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC boosted its position in Murphy Oil by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 227,680 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $6,890,000 after purchasing an additional 34,620 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Murphy Oil by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,857,702 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $56,214,000 after purchasing an additional 13,263 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil during the fourth quarter worth about $618,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil during the fourth quarter worth about $678,000. Institutional investors 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.