Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Given New $34.00 Price Target at UBS Group

Key Points

• UBS raised its price target on Murphy Oil to $34 (from $30) and kept a "neutral" rating, with the new target implying about a 1.39% downside from the current share price.
• The broader analyst consensus is a "Reduce" (13 Holds and 3 Sells) with an average target of $29.75, indicating overall analyst caution despite UBS's higher target.
• Murphy Oil beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.14 vs. ($0.07)) but revenue fell to $613.1M year-over-year; shares traded around $34.48, with a market cap of $4.92B and a P/E of 47.89.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by research analysts at UBS Group from $30.00 to $34.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the oil and gas producer's stock. UBS Group's target price points to a potential downside of 1.39% from the company's current price.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $31.00 target price on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Murphy Oil from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Murphy Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. KeyCorp reiterated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $29.75.

Murphy Oil Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of MUR stock traded up $0.43 during trading on Thursday, reaching $34.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 750,930 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,483,202. Murphy Oil has a one year low of $18.94 and a one year high of $36.08. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $32.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.84. The company has a market cap of $4.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.89 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.21. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 3.83% and a return on equity of 3.73%. The firm had revenue of $613.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $650.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.35 EPS. The company's revenue was down 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in Murphy Oil by 255.3% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 508,012 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $14,433,000 after purchasing an additional 365,011 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,119,622 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $60,218,000 after buying an additional 794,510 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Murphy Oil in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $920,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,766,534 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $107,247,000 after acquiring an additional 312,904 shares during the period. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 512.1% during the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 69,948 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,987,000 after acquiring an additional 58,521 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.31% of the company's stock.

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.

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