Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Stock Price Expected to Rise, The Goldman Sachs Group Analyst Says

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) had its price objective boosted by investment analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $29.00 to $33.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target indicates a potential downside of 2.76% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Murphy Oil from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Murphy Oil from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $30.17.

Murphy Oil Stock Up 4.1%

NYSE:MUR traded up $1.33 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $33.94. The stock had a trading volume of 895,757 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,516,278. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The company has a market capitalization of $4.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.06 and a beta of 0.72. Murphy Oil has a 1-year low of $18.94 and a 1-year high of $36.08. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.20.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last released its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $613.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $650.90 million. Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 3.73% and a net margin of 3.83%.Murphy Oil’s quarterly revenue was down 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.35 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Murphy Oil

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MUR. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in Murphy Oil during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 67.3% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,094 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy Oil during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 72.9% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,701 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 39.7% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,440 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 693 shares during the last quarter. 78.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Murphy Oil Company Profile

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.