Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $30.48 and last traded at $30.60, with a volume of 128202 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $31.62.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MUR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price target on Murphy Oil from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Murphy Oil from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Murphy Oil from $43.00 to $42.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Murphy Oil from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their target price on Murphy Oil from $47.00 to $36.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Murphy Oil presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.92.

Murphy Oil Trading Down 5.2 %

The company has a fifty day moving average of $33.06 and a 200-day moving average of $36.73. The company has a market capitalization of $4.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.67 and a beta of 2.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $758.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $759.74 million. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 9.22%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Murphy Oil Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.00%. Murphy Oil’s payout ratio is 38.71%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUR. Covestor Ltd raised its position in Murphy Oil by 266.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 741 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 1,015.7% during the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 569 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Murphy Oil during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its position in Murphy Oil by 106.5% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 758 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.