The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Invests $4.26 Million in Murphy Oil Corporation $MUR

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 130,939 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $4,263,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Murphy Oil during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $626,514,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Murphy Oil by 105.6% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,310,884 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $136,574,000 after acquiring an additional 1,700,498 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the second quarter worth $49,681,000. SIR Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy Oil in the third quarter worth $30,896,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Murphy Oil during the third quarter worth $21,096,000. 78.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho raised shares of Murphy Oil to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Murphy Oil in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $44.00 price objective on shares of Murphy Oil in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Murphy Oil from $48.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Murphy Oil from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.58.

Murphy Oil Stock Performance

Shares of MUR stock opened at $36.38 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Murphy Oil Corporation has a 12-month low of $24.49 and a 12-month high of $43.34. The business’s 50 day moving average is $35.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.76. The company has a market capitalization of $5.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.01 and a beta of 0.50.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by ($0.02). Murphy Oil had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 6.63%. The business had revenue of $926.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $888.51 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 33.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Murphy Oil Corporation will post 2.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy Oil Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.31%.

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.