Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) Receives $29.23 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Reduce" from the fifteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have assigned a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $29.23.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $28.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Roth Capital lowered shares of Murphy Oil from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $25.00 in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Monday, April 21st.

Murphy Oil Stock Performance

Murphy Oil stock traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $25.03. The stock had a trading volume of 2,954,719 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,289,011. The firm's fifty day moving average is $21.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.07. The company has a market capitalization of $3.57 billion, a PE ratio of 9.31 and a beta of 1.09. Murphy Oil has a 52-week low of $18.95 and a 52-week high of $43.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last released 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. The company had revenue of $665.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $684.89 million. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 13.44% and a return on equity of 7.66%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Murphy Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a $0.325 dividend. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Murphy Oil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 342.8% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 828 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Murphy Oil in the first quarter worth $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in Murphy Oil by 3,989.7% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,186 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 1,157 shares during the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in Murphy Oil by 60.5% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. 78.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.