Poplar Forest Capital LLC Has $14.10 Million Stock Holdings in Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR)

Poplar Forest Capital LLC lessened its position in Murphy Oil Co. (NYSE:MUR) by 27.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 330,411 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 128,167 shares during the quarter. Murphy Oil makes up about 2.1% of Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s holdings in Murphy Oil were worth $14,095,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Murphy Oil in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,669,000. Lindenwold Advisors INC bought a new position in Murphy Oil in the third quarter valued at approximately $369,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Murphy Oil by 29.5% in the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 8,445 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 1,924 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Murphy Oil by 1.0% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 22,125 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,003,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance bought a new position in Murphy Oil in the third quarter valued at approximately $534,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.31% of the company’s stock.

Murphy Oil Stock Performance

MUR traded up $0.06 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $46.22. The stock had a trading volume of 986,465 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,817,354. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $43.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.65. The firm has a market cap of $7.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.95 and a beta of 2.21. Murphy Oil Co. has a one year low of $32.80 and a one year high of $49.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.00 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $844.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $852.24 million. Murphy Oil had a net margin of 19.12% and a return on equity of 13.02%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Murphy Oil Co. will post 4.82 EPS for the current year.

Murphy Oil Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.60%. Murphy Oil’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy Oil

In other Murphy Oil news, CEO Roger W. Jenkins sold 110,000 shares of Murphy Oil stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.39, for a total value of $4,442,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,035,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,811,324.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Murphy Oil news, CEO Roger W. Jenkins sold 110,000 shares of Murphy Oil stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.39, for a total value of $4,442,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,035,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,811,324.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Paul D. Vaughan sold 6,000 shares of Murphy Oil stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.61, for a total value of $237,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,877 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $470,447.97. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 156,260 shares of company stock valued at $6,322,644 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 5.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on MUR shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on Murphy Oil from $45.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Murphy Oil from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Murphy Oil from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Murphy Oil from $49.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on Murphy Oil in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.00 target price for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.64.

About Murphy Oil

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.