Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $25.26 and last traded at $26.47, with a volume of 3525287 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $25.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MUR shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $35.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $37.00 target price on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group reduced 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. Finally, Truist Financial downgraded Murphy Oil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $42.00 to $31.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Murphy Oil presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.33.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $30.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $33.56. The firm has a market cap of $3.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.84 and a beta of 2.14.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by ($0.27). Murphy Oil had a net margin of 13.44% and a return on equity of 7.66%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.90 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Murphy Oil Co. will post 3.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy Oil Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.325 per share. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Murphy Oil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is 44.61%.

Institutional Trading of Murphy Oil

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Lindenwold Advisors INC raised its position in Murphy Oil by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 10,529 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 16.2% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,140 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 25,069 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $759,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy Oil by 8.1% during the third quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 6,574 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 494 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its position in Murphy Oil by 266.8% in the third 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. 78.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.