Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC Buys Shares of 600,000 Murphy Oil Corporation $MUR

Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 600,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $19,536,000. Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC owned 0.42% of Murphy Oil as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Murphy Oil during the first quarter worth about $1,745,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 24.8% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 942,927 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $38,896,000 after purchasing an additional 187,610 shares during the period. Flax Pond Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,967,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 627.8% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 119,206 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $4,917,000 after purchasing an additional 102,827 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Murphy Oil by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,171,385 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $337,081,000 after buying an additional 238,326 shares during the period. 78.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy Oil Stock Performance

NYSE:MUR opened at $36.00 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.16 billion, a PE ratio of 17.82 and a beta of 0.50. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $35.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $36.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Murphy Oil Corporation has a 12 month low of $24.31 and a 12 month high of $43.34.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by ($0.02). Murphy Oil had a return on equity of 6.63% and a net margin of 9.74%.The business had revenue of $926.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $888.51 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 33.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Murphy Oil Corporation will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is 69.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Roth Capital reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $36.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Murphy Oil from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $44.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $36.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.58.

Murphy Oil 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.