Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday.

MUSA has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Stephens restated an overweight rating and set a $470.00 price target on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $425.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $469.50.

Murphy USA Stock Down 0.4 %

Murphy USA stock opened at $513.14 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20. Murphy USA has a 12-month low of $282.49 and a 12-month high of $521.54. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $473.54 and its 200 day moving average is $430.22. The company has a market capitalization of $10.63 billion, a PE ratio of 21.53 and a beta of 0.77.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.91 by $0.01. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 64.73%. The company had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $6.02 EPS. Murphy USA’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 24.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th were paid a $0.44 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.34%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.39%.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In other news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total value of $4,575,805.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 854 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $438.75, for a total transaction of $374,692.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,099 shares in the company, valued at $8,818,436.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 199,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in Murphy USA by 33.1% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 6,261 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,232,000 after buying an additional 1,557 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Murphy USA by 191.7% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 35,556.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 269,916 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $96,241,000 after buying an additional 269,159 shares during the period. Narus Financial Partners LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 44.6% during the fourth quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 960 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $342,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 1,146.7% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 64,193 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $22,889,000 after buying an additional 59,044 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.81% 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.