Calamos Advisors LLC Makes New $1.09 Million Investment in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Calamos Advisors LLC bought a new position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,311 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,085,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MUSA. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 777.8% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 79 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 141.4% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 394.7% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 94 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Delta Asset Management LLC TN raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 70.7% in the fourth quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN now owns 128 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $514.12 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $491.58 and a 200 day moving average of $445.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.57 and a beta of 0.77. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $309.18 and a 12-month high of $521.54.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.91 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.69 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 64.73%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.02 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 26th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Murphy USA news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 13,454 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.38, for a total value of $6,920,468.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 382,930 shares in the company, valued at $196,971,533.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MUSA. StockNews.com raised shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 17th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $469.50.

About Murphy USA

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.