Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Stock Price

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has reduced its price target for Murphy Oil from $28.00 to $26.00, reflecting a potential downside of 4.41% from the stock's previous close.
• Several analysts have provided mixed ratings for Murphy Oil, with one analyst rating it as a Buy, eleven as Hold, and three as Sell, leading to an average target price of $28.08.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds currently hold 78.31% of Murphy Oil's stock, with notable increases in positions from firms like Charles Schwab Investment Management and Pacer Advisors.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $28.00 to $26.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the oil and gas producer's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target would indicate a potential downside of 4.41% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Murphy Oil from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Murphy Oil from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $28.08.

Murphy Oil Stock Performance

NYSE:MUR opened at $27.20 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $26.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a PE ratio of 14.09 and a beta of 1.03. Murphy Oil has a fifty-two week low of $18.94 and a fifty-two week high of $34.52.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 21st. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.09) EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $440.08 million during the quarter. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 10.20% and a return on equity of 5.25%. Analysts expect that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy Oil

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 210.8% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,610,766 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $159,346,000 after buying an additional 3,805,565 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Murphy Oil by 72.9% during the 1st quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 4,812,267 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $136,668,000 after acquiring an additional 2,029,685 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Murphy Oil by 8,530.7% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,763,345 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $50,079,000 after purchasing an additional 1,742,914 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 111.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,157,707 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $61,279,000 after acquiring an additional 1,137,882 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 44.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,068,290 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $69,037,000 after purchasing an additional 950,630 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.

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