Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Trading 9.5% Higher – What’s Next?

Shares of Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) traded up 9.5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $32.68 and last traded at $32.7550. 1,632,703 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 29% from the average session volume of 2,308,818 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.92.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on MUR shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Murphy Oil from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Roth Capital restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Murphy Oil from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Murphy Oil from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $29.58.

Murphy Oil Stock Down 0.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.65 billion, a PE ratio of 33.21 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $31.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.68.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 21st. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 5.16% and a return on equity of 4.30%. The business had revenue of $440.08 million during the quarter. As a group, analysts expect that Murphy Oil Corporation will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy Oil

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MUR. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in 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 buying an additional 440 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Murphy Oil by 148.1% during the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 1,357 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake 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 valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 693 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 494.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,786 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 2,317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 437.8% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,802 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 3,095 shares during the period. 78.31% of the stock is owned by 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.