Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Downgraded to “Sector Perform” at Scotiabank

Scotiabank downgraded shares of Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) from a sector outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a report published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $50.00 price objective on the oil and gas producer’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $46.00.

MUR has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Wednesday. They set an equal weight rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $53.00 price target (up previously from $50.00) on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $53.00 to $50.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $45.00 to $43.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Murphy Oil has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $48.23.

Murphy Oil Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MUR opened at $47.04 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $42.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.58. Murphy Oil has a fifty-two week low of $32.80 and a fifty-two week high of $49.14. The firm has a market cap of $7.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.15 and a beta of 2.21.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by ($0.10). Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 13.02% and a net margin of 19.12%. The company had revenue of $844.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $852.24 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. Murphy Oil’s revenue was down 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Murphy Oil will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Maria A. Martinez sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.35, for a total value of $433,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 40,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,759,576.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Murphy Oil news, VP Paul D. Vaughan sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.61, for a total transaction of $237,660.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,877 shares in the company, valued at approximately $470,447.97. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Maria A. Martinez sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.35, for a total transaction of $433,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 40,590 shares in the company, valued at $1,759,576.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 156,260 shares of company stock valued at $6,322,644 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Murphy Oil

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MUR. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 68.2% in the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 900 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its stake in Murphy Oil by 7,940.0% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 804 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. 78.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.