Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Sells 27,364 Shares of Murphy Oil Corporation $MUR

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp reduced its stake in shares of Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) by 43.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,458 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 27,364 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Murphy Oil were worth $1,108,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Murphy Oil by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,736,815 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $106,163,000 after acquiring an additional 668,525 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,656,394 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $75,468,000 after buying an additional 204,349 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 60.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,119,622 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $60,218,000 after buying an additional 794,510 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of Murphy Oil by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,056,427 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $58,423,000 after buying an additional 514,127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted 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 valued at $57,695,000 after buying an additional 18,717 shares in the last quarter. 78.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Murphy Oil Stock Performance

NYSE MUR opened at $41.71 on Wednesday. Murphy Oil Corporation has a 1 year low of $20.20 and a 1 year high of $43.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.98 billion, a PE ratio of 57.93 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.39.

Murphy Oil Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 194.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on MUR shares. Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Murphy Oil from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Murphy Oil from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Murphy Oil currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.27.

Insider Transactions at Murphy Oil

In other Murphy Oil news, SVP Daniel R. Hanchera sold 47,320 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.79, for a total value of $1,598,942.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 36,166 shares in the company, valued at $1,222,049.14. This represents a 56.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 5.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Murphy Oil

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.