Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Rating Increased to Hold at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Murphy Oil from a "strong sell" to a "hold".
• Despite some firms raising price targets, the sell-side consensus remains "Reduce" with an average target of $29.83 and most analysts rating the stock as Hold or Sell (14 Hold, 2 Sell), implying downside versus the current ~ $32.60 price.
• Murphy's latest quarter delivered an EPS beat ($0.14 vs. -$0.07 expected) while revenue missed at $613.1M and declined 6.9% year-over-year.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on MUR. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Murphy Oil from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Murphy Oil from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Murphy Oil from $31.00 to $29.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Murphy Oil from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $29.83.

Murphy Oil Stock Down 3.1%

MUR opened at $32.60 on Monday. Murphy Oil has a 1 year low of $18.94 and a 1 year high of $36.08. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $32.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a PE ratio of 45.28 and a beta of 0.72.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Murphy Oil by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 11,091 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $347,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 45,662 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,427,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 49,066 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,533,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares during the period. Impact Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC now owns 15,143 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $473,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 13,893 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $434,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. 78.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Murphy Oil

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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