Murphy Oil enters stock buyback deal
Murphy Oil Corp. has entered into an agreement with Merrill Lynch International to buy back $250 million of the El Dorado based company’s stock.
The buyback is the second part of Murphy Oil’s $1 billion stock repurchasing plan that was announced in October 2012, according to a news release.
Murphy Oil said it finished an earlier $250 million repurchasing transaction Thursday. Under that plan, which was announced in December 2012, the company bought back 4.06 million shares of stock, according to the news release.
Murphy had a first quarter profit of $361 million, up 24 percent from the same period a year ago. The company’s earnings per share were $1.88 for the period ending March 31.
- Jessica Seaman
UA business team 2nd in plan contest
HomeDx, a team from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, took second place in the graduate division of the Donald W.
Reynolds Tri-State business plan competition, winning $20,000.
HomeDx, which developed an at-home diagnostic test for influenza, also earned an additional $2,000 for winning the elevator pitch competition. The contest concluded earlier this week in Las Vegas, according to a news release Friday.
The team said its focus is providing over-the counter diagnostic tests for influenza, food allergies and sexually transmitted diseases.
The competing teams were first- and second-place finishers at the Donald W.
Reynolds Governor’s Cup competitions in Arkansas, Oklahoma and Nevada.
HomeDx won $15,000 as the second-place graduate winner in Arkansas in April and $7,000 at the Global New Venture Competition in March at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The HomeDx team included master of business administration students Max Mahler, Audra Mazzeo, Calvin Smith and Will Swearingen, and master of accounting student Daniel Cherry.
- John Magsam
Wal-Mart spurs rise in Arkansas Index
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, gained 0.29 to 284.35 Friday.
Wal-Mart rose 1.3 percent on average volume of about 7.6 million shares.
P.A.M. Transportation Services fell 2.5 percent on half its average volume.
For the week, 13 stocks fell and three rose.
Murphy Oil lost 4.2 percent for the week.
Volume for the index was 15.6 million shares, compared with average daily volume of 25 million shares.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business, Pages 29 on 05/25/2013