Barclays PLC Reduces Stake in Murphy Oil Corporation $MUR

Barclays PLC lowered its stake in shares of Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) by 33.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 906,446 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 454,083 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned 0.64% of Murphy Oil worth $25,752,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 0.3% in the third quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 322,500 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $9,162,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,030,794 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $57,695,000 after purchasing an additional 18,717 shares during the period. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil during the 3rd quarter valued at about $217,000. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Murphy Oil in the 3rd quarter worth about $3,372,000. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Murphy Oil by 2.7% in the third quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 169,730 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $4,822,000 after purchasing an additional 4,422 shares during the last quarter. 78.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Murphy Oil Trading Up 4.4%

Shares of NYSE:MUR opened at $34.03 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $32.45 and its 200 day moving average is $30.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Murphy Oil Corporation has a 1 year low of $18.94 and a 1 year high of $36.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.27 and a beta of 0.72.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.21. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 3.83% and a return on equity of 3.73%. The business had revenue of $613.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $650.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.35 EPS. Murphy Oil’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Murphy Oil Corporation will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. This is a boost from Murphy Oil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Murphy Oil’s payout ratio is currently 194.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MUR. Wall Street Zen raised Murphy Oil from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Mizuho upped their price objective on Murphy Oil from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. UBS Group increased their target price on Murphy Oil from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Murphy Oil from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Thursday, January 29th. 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.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $30.17.

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.