Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on MUR. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Murphy Oil from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Murphy Oil from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Murphy Oil from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Murphy Oil from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $28.33.

Murphy Oil Trading Up 3.5%

NYSE MUR opened at $29.77 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Murphy Oil has a 1-year low of $18.94 and a 1-year high of $34.52. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.98. The company has a market capitalization of $4.25 billion, a PE ratio of 15.43 and a beta of 0.99.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 21st. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 10.20% and a return on equity of 5.25%. The firm had revenue of $440.08 million for the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Murphy Oil will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy Oil

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Murphy Oil by 67.3% in 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 acquiring an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 3,989.7% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,186 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 1,710.9% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,666 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,574 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 246.6% in the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,747 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 148.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,357 shares in the last quarter. 78.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy Oil Company Profile

Murphy Oil Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an oil and gas exploration and production company in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It explores for and produces crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids. The company was formerly known as Murphy Corporation and changed its name to Murphy Oil Corporation in 1964.