Seaport Global Initiates Coverage of Murphy Oil (MUR) at Neutral
Fintel reports that on September 3, 2026, Seaport Global initiated coverage of Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) with a Neutral recommendation.
On September 3, 2026, the stock closed at $37.32, following a pre-action close of $37.69 on September 2, 2026. This latest close represents a one-week price increase of 3.81% from the baseline close of $35.95 on August 27, 2026. Over a longer one-month period, the stock has declined by 3.64% from its baseline close of $38.73 on August 3, 2026.
As of August 29, 2026, the current consensus target mean for Murphy Oil was $40.72, with a median target of $41.82. This mean target represents an implied change of +9.11% and a 7.49% downward revision from the prior consensus target mean of $44.02 recorded on August 4, 2026.
Separately, the aggregate analyst recommendation profile as of September 1, 2026, consisted of 23 total recommendations: 0 strong buy, 3 buy, 12 hold, 7 sell, and 1 strong sell ratings. This distribution reflects 13.0% positive, 52.2% hold, and 34.8% negative recommendations. In comparison, the prior recommendation period as of August 1, 2026, showed 0 strong buy, 2 buy, 13 hold, 6 sell, and 1 strong sell ratings.
Other recent analyst actions include Wells Fargo maintaining an Equal-Weight rating on September 2, 2026. Prior to that, Barclays downgraded the stock from Equal-Weight to Underweight on August 14, 2026. On August 13, 2026, Keybanc maintained its Overweight rating, while Wells Fargo maintained its Equal-Weight rating. Barclays maintained an Equal-Weight rating on August 10, 2026, and UBS maintained its Neutral rating on August 7, 2026.
Murphy Oil reported its latest quarterly earnings on August 5, 2026. The company posted an actual EPS of 1.55, slightly above the estimated EPS of 1.5485, representing a surprise of +0.10%. Actual revenue reached $926,332,000, exceeding the estimated revenue of $872,410,730.
Murphy Oil Corporation is an international oil and gas exploration and production company operating primarily in North America, with significant assets in the Gulf of Mexico and onshore in the United States and Canada. The company also conducts exploration activities in Australia, Brazil, and Mexico. Key projects include the development of the King's Quay floating production system in the Gulf of Mexico, which is designed to improve production efficiency and resource recovery.
Recent analyst actions
| Date | Analyst | Prior | Latest recommendation | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 3, 2026 | Seaport Global | Neutral | initiated coverage | |
| September 2, 2026 | Wells Fargo | Equal-Weight | Equal-Weight | maintained |
| August 14, 2026 | Barclays | Equal-Weight | Underweight | downgrade |
| August 13, 2026 | Keybanc | Overweight | Overweight | maintained |
| August 13, 2026 | Wells Fargo | Equal-Weight | Equal-Weight | maintained |
| August 10, 2026 | Barclays | Equal-Weight | Equal-Weight | maintained |
| August 7, 2026 | UBS | Neutral | Neutral | maintained |
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This story originally appeared on Fintel.