Norden Group LLC Makes New Investment in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,099 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $461,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 35,556.0% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 269,916 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $96,241,000 after purchasing an additional 269,159 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth about $81,560,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 194,560 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $69,372,000 after purchasing an additional 1,986 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 128,194 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $45,709,000 after purchasing an additional 17,077 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System grew its stake in Murphy USA by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 117,096 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $41,752,000 after acquiring an additional 2,199 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MUSA. StockNews.com raised shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $408.60.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of MUSA opened at $471.89 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $282.49 and a twelve month high of $489.89. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $450.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $414.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.80 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.97). The company had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 64.45%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.80 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th were given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 17th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.39%.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total transaction of $4,575,805.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Murphy USA news, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 854 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $438.75, for a total transaction of $374,692.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,818,436.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total transaction of $4,575,805.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,451 shares of company stock valued at $5,032,498 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 9.73% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA Inc engages in marketing of retail motor fuel products and convenience merchandise. The company operates retail stores under the Murphy USA, Murphy Express, and QuickChek brands, as well as operates non-fuel convenience stores. It operates retail gasoline stores principally in the Southeast, Southwest, and Midwest United States.