156,144 Shares in Murphy Oil Corporation $MUR Purchased by Freestone Grove Partners LP

Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 156,144 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $5,084,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in Murphy Oil in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in shares of Murphy Oil during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased 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 acquired a new position in shares of Murphy Oil in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 717 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.31% of the company’s stock.

Murphy Oil Stock Down 0.8%

MUR opened at $35.67 on Friday. Murphy Oil Corporation has a one year low of $24.49 and a one year high of $43.34. The company has a market capitalization of $5.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.66 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $35.56 and its 200-day moving average is $36.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $888.51 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.27 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 33.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Murphy Oil Corporation will post 2.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MUR shares. Barclays cut shares of Murphy Oil from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $38.00 to $34.00 in a report on Friday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Murphy Oil from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Roth Capital restated a “neutral” rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Murphy Oil in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Murphy Oil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.58.

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.