Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Tuesday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Raymond James upped their price target 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. Finally, 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 research note on Thursday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $469.50.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Murphy USA stock opened at $527.27 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $506.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $458.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20. The company has a market cap of $10.92 billion, a PE ratio of 22.13 and a beta of 0.77. Murphy USA has a twelve month low of $334.61 and a twelve month high of $552.30.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.91 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.73% and a net margin of 2.50%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.02 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Murphy USA will post 24.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.34%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total transaction of $1,023,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,242,955.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Murphy USA news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 16,755 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.54, for a total transaction of $8,621,117.70. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 396,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $203,955,423.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total transaction of $1,023,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,242,955.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,209 shares of company stock worth $16,564,666 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its position in Murphy USA by 1,091.4% during the 1st quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 14,464 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,063,000 after acquiring an additional 13,250 shares in the last quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in Murphy USA during the first quarter valued at about $1,258,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in Murphy USA by 21.2% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 16,673 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,991,000 after purchasing an additional 2,911 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter worth about $8,949,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 10.3% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 13,461 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $5,646,000 after buying an additional 1,254 shares during the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.