Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Stock Price

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from $27.00 to $26.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "underweight" rating on the oil and gas producer's stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective points to a potential upside of 20.62% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Scotiabank cut 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 report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Murphy Oil from $33.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Murphy Oil from $31.00 to $26.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Truist Financial cut Murphy Oil from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $42.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Johnson Rice lowered shares of Murphy Oil from an "accumulate" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $29.23.

Murphy Oil Stock Performance

Shares of Murphy Oil stock traded up $0.13 during trading on Friday, hitting $21.56. 1,172,025 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,205,413. Murphy Oil has a 1 year low of $18.95 and a 1 year high of $43.02. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.03 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $684.89 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy Oil

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MUR. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in Murphy Oil by 342.8% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 828 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 3,989.7% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,186 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157 shares during the period. GeoWealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Murphy Oil during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in Murphy Oil by 60.5% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.31% of the company's stock.

About Murphy Oil

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.