Murphy Oil Misses the Mark in Q3 (MUR)

Created by Dividend.com

Shares of Murphy Oil (MUR) are looking lower after the company said its net income fell nearly 68% to $188.9 million, or 97 cents a share, from $584.4 million or $3.04 a share a year ago.

Revenue for the quarter fell 36% to $5.18 billion from $8.17 billion, as the company came in a penny below analyst EPS estimates.

The company received a price average of $61.13 a barrel for its oil and condensate, about half the $112.55 average it was paid in the third quarter of 2008. The company’s natural-gas sales brought in on average $3.01 per thousand cubic feet during the quarter, compared with $11.51 per a year ago.

The company is forecasting fourth-quarter earnings of between 75 cents and 90 cents a share. This is below the average analyst estimate of $1.18.

The Bottom Line
We removed shares of MUR from our “recommended” list last July, when the stock was trading at $79.59. The company has a 1.58% dividend yield, based on last night’s closing stock price of $63.27. The stock has technical support in the $55-$57 price area. If the shares can firm up, we see overhead resistance around the $67-$70 price levels. We would remain on the sidelines for now.

Murphy Oil (MUR) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars.

Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks, as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here.