Murphy Oil (MUR) Q2 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Bubale-1X oil discovery in Côte d'Ivoire marked a key development, with appraisal underway and estimated resources of 340–850 MMBOE; major project milestones also included progress at Lac Da Vang in Vietnam and new wells in Eagle Ford and Kaybob.

• Net income for Q2 2026 surged to $232 million, up from $22 million in Q2 2025, driven by higher commodity prices and strong operational performance, with production averaging 169,000–175,013 BOE/day.

• Capital expenditure guidance for 2026 increased to $1.5–$1.6 billion, mainly to fund Bubale appraisal, Eagle Ford acceleration, and higher costs at Chinook #8.

• Returned $50 million to shareholders via dividend in Q2 2026, with $550 million remaining under the share repurchase program.

• Advanced key offshore and international projects, including new discoveries in Côte d'Ivoire and Vietnam, and completed key development wells in the Gulf of America.

Financial highlights

• Q2 2026 revenue from production was $926 million, up from $683 million in Q2 2025, with adjusted net income per share of $1.55 and adjusted EBITDA of $593 million.

• Generated $110 million in free cash flow for the quarter, with lease operating expense at $8.83/BOE.

• Maintained liquidity of $2.48–$2.5 billion at quarter-end, including $480–$484 million in cash and $2.0 billion undrawn credit.

• Net income margin for Q2 2026 was approximately 25%.

• Minimum 50% of adjusted free cash flow allocated to shareholder returns.

Outlook and guidance

• Q3 2026 production guidance: 171,000–179,000 BOE/day; full-year 2026 guidance: 167,000–175,000 BOE/day.

• Full-year 2026 capital expenditures guidance raised to $1.5–$1.6 billion, with $300 million exploration expense expected.

• Bubale appraisal program staged and data-driven, with spending and pace adjusted based on results.

• Lac Da Vang in Vietnam on track for first oil in Q4 2026, ramping to 5,000–9,000 BOE/day by end of 2027.

• 2027 capital spending expected to be higher than recent years, driven by Bubale appraisal results.