Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Raises Stake in Murphy Oil Corporation $MUR

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) by 3.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,171,385 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 238,326 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.06% of Murphy Oil worth $337,081,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MUR. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new position in Murphy Oil during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Murphy Oil by 14,700.0% during the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 740 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Murphy Oil by 72.9% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,701 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.31% of the company’s stock.

Murphy Oil Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE MUR opened at $37.29 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $36.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.78. The company has a market capitalization of $5.35 billion, a PE ratio of 63.21 and a beta of 0.52. Murphy Oil Corporation has a 12-month low of $21.86 and a 12-month high of $43.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.03. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 3.02% and a return on equity of 3.09%. The business had revenue of $732.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $702.96 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.56 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Murphy Oil Corporation will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on MUR. Roth Capital reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Murphy Oil from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen cut Murphy Oil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Murphy Oil from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Murphy Oil from $36.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.33.

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.