Murphy Oil Corporation MUR is slated to report first-quarter 2024 financial results on May 2, before market open. The company delivered a negative earnings surprise of 12.62% in the last reported quarter.
Let’s discuss the factors likely to have impacted MUR’s quarterly performance.
Factors to Consider
Murphy Oil’s first-quarter earnings are expected to have benefited from the ramp-up of production from its non-operated Terra Nova field offshore Canada. The fixed price natural gas contracts at Tupper Montney, Canada, are likely to have positively impacted quarterly earnings.
MUR’s ongoing debt-reduction initiatives are expected to have lowered capital servicing expenses, thus boosting margins in the quarter under review. Share buybacks are also likely to have aided the bottom line.
Quarterly production volumes are likely to have been adversely impacted by 13,000 barrels equivalent per day of total Gulf of Mexico downtime as well as 2,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day of onshore downtime.
Q1 Expectations
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for sales is pegged at $732.4 million, indicating a decline of nearly 13% from the year-ago reported figure. The Zacks consensus estimate for earnings per share is pegged at 86 cents, implying a decline of 30.7% from the prior-year reported figure.
Murphy Oil anticipates quarterly production in the range of 163.5-171 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (MBOEPD). Out of the expected production, 53% is anticipated to be oil. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at 169.09 MBOEPD. The Gulf of Mexico volumes are expected to have been the largest contributor to its total production in the quarter under discussion, with 73.6 MBOEPD.
What Our Quantitative Model Predicts
Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for Murphy Oil this time around. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earnings beat, which is not the case here, as you will see below.
Murphy Oil Corporation Price and EPS Surprise
Murphy Oil Corporation price-eps-surprise | Murphy Oil Corporation Quote
Earnings ESP: Murphy Oil has an Earnings ESP of -1.49%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Zacks Rank: Murphy Oil currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Stocks to Consider
Investors can consider the following players from the same sector that, per our model, have the right combination of elements to beat on earnings this reporting cycle.
ConocoPhillips COP is slated to post first-quarter results on May 2, 2024. COP has an Earnings ESP of +2.85% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for COP’s first-quarter 2024 earnings has gone up 1.9% in the past 30 days.
EOG Resources EOG is set to release first-quarter numbers on May 3, 2024. EOG has an Earnings ESP of +0.95% and a Zacks Rank #2.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EOG’s first-quarter 2024 earnings implies an increase of 3.4% in the past 30 days.
PBF Energy Inc. PBF is scheduled to report first-quarter figures on May 2, 2024. PBF has an Earnings ESP of +14.10% and a Zacks Rank #2.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for PBF’s first-quarter 2024 earnings implies an increase of 7.8% in the past 30 days.
Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
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